VICTORIAN PLAYERS Wacky spoof keeps up a hectic pace

The play pokes fun at British ladies' drama guilds.
By L. CROW
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
In the early '70s a Brit named Walter Zerlin Jr., noted that his mother's dramatic society, of which she was a longtime devoted member, consistently presented dreadful productions.
But he also noted that the women had great fun, and didn't seem concerned with all the little foibles. Soon after, he teamed up with David McGillivray, and they began a long and successful career of writing plays that poked fun at the incompetence of the typical British ladies' drama guilds, premiering their first play at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1976.
Jean McClure Kelty, the late founder of The Victorian Players, became a fan of these wacky British spoofs. Now, in her honor, the troupe continues to present them to the public.
Their current production is "The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Townswomen's Guild Dramatic Society Murder Mystery," directed by Dawn Hoon. There are six characters who play all 15 parts in their presentation of "Murder at Checkmate Manor."
The setup
Inspector O'Reilly (John Dalbec) is called to the manor when people start getting murdered, and he notes that they all have last names such as Bishop, King ... the butler's name is Pawn (Rosa Dalbec). He also notes that those particular chess pieces show up missing at the time of the murder. And it all revolves around the reading of the late Sir Reginald Bishop's will.
But it doesn't really matter what the plot is, because the play is so stupid and gets so screwed up, and in the end, one of the ladies gets a phone call and has to leave, so they make up a new ending anyway. But it is all the stuff that goes wrong, to which the cast seems nearly oblivious, that make this play really quite funny. And those who are fans of British humor will find it even more hysterical.
The pace is fast and the humor is nonstop, and the more you are on your toes the more puns you'll catch.
Everything goes wrong
At first, the set appears quite lovely, but leave it to the ladies, and things soon fall apart. Curtains rip, furniture breaks, the open window in the back gives the audience full view to cast members walking backstage. "Fine tea sets" are actually paper, and what is supposed to look like expensive liquor is actually a glass painted in a sort of neon pink.
The actors forget lines, rearrange events, lose props, and enter wearing the wrong costumes, and the sound effects don't match what is happening onstage. Doors are answered before the knock is heard and dead people accidentally show up onstage. And in the midst of it all, the Inspector and Daphne (Terri Labedz) do a ridiculous song and dance routine. At intermission, there is an equally inane fashion show, plus a quiz to win a prize.
The two other cast members are Pat Schauweker and Carlene Hoon.
In spite of the tiny audience at the Saturday performance, we all enjoyed the show, giving it a standing ovation. This play, however, works with audience energy and really begs for a full house. If you like wacky, tacky spoofs, this one is a winner.
It continues Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. For ticket information, call (330) 746-5455 at the theater at 702 Mahoning Ave.