"Suite Surrender" Gets More Than Three Stars

The service is first class in this amusing hotel farce in which two pretentious divas are booked into the same suite. It has all the gasping, door slamming and misdirection you'd expect in this classic comedic genre, populated by stereotypes so exaggerated that the roles almost play themselves.

Tania Joy (as Claudia McFadden) and Jennifer McHugh (Athena Sinclair) are the two leading ladies who create fantastic caricatures of 1940's era USO songstresses, delivering complete performances of music, movement, multiple costume changes and sneering dialogue.

Gabor Mark (Bernard S. Dunlap) portrayed a heel-clicking yet beleaguered hotel manager with an amazing repertoire of attitudes and affects as he exchanged lines with his VIP guests and his fumbling, ingratiating staff.

Casting by Director Julie Price was superb, as the supporting actors all turned in boisterous, over-the-top, physical performances in parts that were nearly impossible to overact.

Suite Surrender is an excellent choice for the Elgin Art Showcase with its high ceilings and grand piano, set up with vases, velvet, and vintage decor that perfectly evoked the extravagance of a bygone era. Though the script may not break any new creative ground, its familiar trajectory is punctuated by a clever plot twist. No spoilers here!

Cross your fingers for another wardrobe malfunction — it's just the sort of unscripted element that perfects a comedy like this, in the hands of such skilled actors.

The show continues through February 9th at the Elgin Art Showcase, 164 Division Street, Eighth Floor, in downtown Elgin. Shows are Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm. For reservations or more information, call (847) 741-0532, email tickets@inil.com or go to elgin-theatre.org.

Independent Players present a Classic Comedy

In a play about the theatre, in which actors play the roles of actors and other theatrical personnel, the possibilities for a multi-layered plot are intriguing. Where Noel Coward's Present Laughter (1939) is light on plot, it's heavy on characterizations, to which good actors will bring the best of their craft.

Directed by Don Haefliger, the Independent Players' cast of eleven seized the opportunity on opening night Friday at the Elgin Art Showcase.

In a role which Coward created for himself, Gabor Mark plays Gary Essendine, a temperamental and self-indulgent actor turned 41. Mark captures the exaggerations and peccadilloes of a spoiled British Thespian in his brilliant caricature, flinging out lines like "My entire life is one long torment, and no one remotely cares!"

Standing out among the supporting cast was Madeline Franklin as the vivacious Joanna, a wife and mistress within Gary's inner circle. Her stage presence and delivery commanded attention in every scene she shared with the other quirky and pretentious characters.

Coward's classic script is witty and downright hilarious at times, but still richly detailed with self-conscious lines like "I'm always acting," and "Don't be affected, Gary," and "Stop being theatrical!" All of these characters — not just the actors — are profound liars in their own way, and even the hired help injects drama into the story.

But this is really an actor's play. The more experienced players' quality of entrances, body language, and diction was superb, showing just the right restraint in this barely civilized farce. Some of the accents were better than others, but they were all successful, even communicating region and social class which, along with excellent costumes, created vivid personalities.

The run time is more than two hours (with an intermission), but you won't be checking your watch with all this colorful and comedic melodrama happening just a few feet away. See it for yourself, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm through March 16th at the Elgin Art Showcase, 164 Division Street. For tickets and more information, go to independentplayers.org