One For the Pot at HCT

Last night I went to see Hale Centre Theatre's production of One For the Pot and it was the second madcap comedy that I've seen in as many days. I was not at all familiar with this show but I love British farces and all of the slamming doors and mistaken identities kept me laughing out loud from beginning to end! Jonathan Hardcastle (Mark Fotheringham) is a wealthy mill owner who is trying to find the son of his former business partner to bestow a large amount of money on him. He places an advertisement in the newspaper asking him to come to his manor to confirm his identity and prove that he is his partner's only living relative. Billy Hickory Woods (Bryan Dayley) and his friend Charlie Barnet (Kyle Baugh), who is pretending to be his lawyer in order to benefit from this bequest, arrive on the day that Hardcastle's daughter Cynthia (Megan Heaps) is celebrating her birthday with a dance organized by Hardcastle's sister Amy (Tamari Dunbar). Hardcastle's lawyer, and Amy's boyfriend, Arnold Piper (David Marsden) is on hand as is Cynthia's latest admirer Clifton Weaver (Jamie Rocha Allan). Hilarity ensues when Billy's heretofore unknown brothers Rupert, Michael, and Francois (all played by Dayley) also show up to claim the money, and romance Cynthia, forcing Charlie to enlist the butler Jugg (Jeff Blake) to keep them away from Hardcastle and Billy's suspicious wife Winnie (Jasmine Fuller). The action becomes more and more frenetic as the situation descends into the absurd with characters running in and out, hiding in unusual locations (my favorite was a window seat), incapacitating each other through various means, and impersonating each other. The physical comedy is absolutely hilarious and I was especially impressed with Dayley (I've seen him in other HCT comedies and he is brilliant) because I have no idea how he was able to exit the stage as one character and enter seconds later as another character! What a workout! Most of the brothers end up wearing the same black tuxedo so they are only differentiated by Dayley with an accent and a facial expression. It was amazing because you could immediately see which character he was playing as soon as he came on stage. I laughed at just about everything he said and did! I was also impressed with Heaps because she is the understudy for all of the female roles and her performance as Cynthia was flawless (once again, I must commend all of the understudies who keep these shows open through the madness). Director Ryan L. Simmons added a live band into the mix with a set that rotates on a turntable between the lounge and the ballroom where they perform during the dance. This play is set in the late 1950s so the music is a lot of fun and the musicians (Byran Matthew Hague on guitar, Daniel Pack on bass, and John Nielsen on drums) are outstanding. The only element that didn't really work for me was the audience participation initiated by Baugh because it seemed a bit forced. Otherwise, this show is a delight and I recommend it for a fun night out.  It runs on the Sorenson Legacy Jewel Box Stage through April 2 (go here for tickets).