Thursday, September 29, 2011
My Life at the Theater: Lend Me a Tenor
A more recent version.
I saw LEND ME A TENOR in 1989 in New York with its original cast which included Victor Garber, Tolvah Feldshuh and Philip Bosco. It was a very funny play. Set in 1934 and concerning the problems of replacing an opera star, it is full of screwball techniques, innuendo, double entendre and opening and closing doors. A good time indeed.
It's been revived since as this clip shows.
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6 comments:
That's funny, we saw it in [March of] 1989 too. Frankly, I was not as impressed as you were, though I'm a big Philip Bosco fan. We've seen him in many Shaw plays - Saint Joan, The Devil's Disciple, Major Barbara, and You Never Can Tell - as well as this and The Heiress (with Cherry Jones as the daughter) and the little known but very funny Breaking Legs (with Vincent Gardenia).
Jeff M.
Oh, Breaking Legs (about low level mobsters investing in a play) was off-Broadway. I know the Times didn't like it but we did.
Bosco won the Tony for Tenor.
Bosco and his wife have 7 children, which is why he said he's always needed to keep working!
Jeff M.
I'm a sucker for slamming doors.
Patti - Oh, you're lucky to have seen this :-). Thanks for sharing the little clip. And sometimes, slamming doors can be very, very effective.
Although Ken Ludwig is American the play was originally produced in the UK where this kind of theater has a tradition of being adored and being finanacilly successful. So it was an American written, British produced import that transferred to Broadway three years after it was already a hit in London. Sad, I think. Farce should be big in the US but it's not often commercially successful. I'll never understand that. "I Love Lucy" - one ofthe most popular TV shows in the world - is nothing but farce if you look at the best episodes. Why won't people pay to see comic plays that incorporate all these mechanics and outrageous coincidences? Audiences love it on TV but won't go see it on stage where it works even better. A real mystery to me.
My favorite is NOISES OFF or YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU. Or FRASIER on tv.
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