‘Sherlock Holmes’ comes to life at Victorian Players

March 7, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

By MILAN PAURICH

YOUNGSTOWN

Thanks to Robert Downey Jr.’s holiday blockbuster “Sherlock Holmes,” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic 19th-century sleuth is hip and relevant again. But the spotlight that Downey and director Guy Ritchie helped shine anew on Holmes might explain why the Victorian Players was packed to the gills for Friday night’s opening performance of “Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure.” Kudos to Vic managing director Marilyn Higgins for her serendipitous timing.

The fact that director Sam Luptak Jr.’s show is also entertaining, briskly paced and juicily acted should bode well for its three-weekend run. If the boisterous ovation that greeted the cast during Friday’s curtain call is any indication, word of mouth promises to be off the hook.

Freely adapted from an 1899 version of the play written by master thespian William Gillette (who played Holmes numerous times on both stage and screen) and Conan Doyle himself, Steven Dietz’s “Final Adventure” works best as an affectionate homage to London’s most famous “consulting detective.”

The Byzantine plot is typical Holmes balderdash, so don’t worry if you can’t follow the convoluted scenario from scene to scene. There’s a dandy payoff at the end, though, and all of the familiar Holmesian tropes — including his trademark deerstalker hat and violin — are present and accounted for. Even the dastardly Professor Moriarity (a suitably menacing Dave Schneider) is along for the ride.

Loquaciously narrated by Holmes’ right-hand man Dr. John Watson (the Robert Morley-esque Brian Lee), the action commences when Holmes (Dave Wolford) is visited by the King of Bohemia (Roger Wright). The playboy monarch is worried that a compromising photograph taken with celebrated opera diva Irene Adler (a smashing Connie Cassady) will be used to blackmail him. Holmes’ assignment is to retrieve the purloined photo — a task complicated by archnemesis Moriarity, mastermind behind the extortion plot.

Aiding and abetting Moriarity are suave con man James Larrabee (Jim Canacci, terrific), Larrabee’s vixenish sister (delicious Caty Sacui) and their Cockney teen apprentice (Columbiana High School freshman Dylan White). The biggest hurdle Holmes must overcome is his growing infatuation with the comely soprano who may — or may not be; Dietz and Cassady keep us guessing — as innocent as she seems.

The handsomely designed production (major props to Pam Sacui for her top-notch period costumes) did have its share of opening night gaffes. Some lines were flubbed, and the lighting in Act Two was so murkily indistinct at times that the actors seemed to be performing in half-shadow. Yet thanks to Luptak’s gifted ensemble, “The Final Adventure” is more fun than I’ve had at the theater in months.

Though the strapping Wolford might not seem like the most obvious choice for Holmes, his enthusiasm at tackling his first lead role is infectious. It’s impossible not to smile whenever he’s onstage. Cassady, Schneider, Canacci, Sacui and White offer splendid support, and even the smallest parts are judiciously filled. (South Range Middle School student Donny Wolford and Luptak’s assistant director Tom Smith both do yeoman work in their dual roles.) Props also to dialect coach Terri Wilkes for the cast’s mostly spot-on accents.

“Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure” runs through March 21 at the Victorian Players, 702 Mahoning Avenue. For reservations and showtimes, call (330) 746-5455.