Upton Abbey
Upton Abbey
Created and Directed by David Charles
Annie Russel Theatre
Winter Park, FL</strong>
Maybe Improv Comedy doesn’t need to be funny, but it helps if you can hear it. David Charles certainly knows improv, and the long running “Upton Abbey” offers a certain PBS stuffiness that demands ridicule, but this longish attempt at lampoon fails on the trident of too few laughs, too much furniture movement, and a noodling live sound track that did nothing for the story other than drown out the un-miked actors.
We begin on an elegant stage artfully composed of multiple levels, a few faux art deco curves, and some widows indicating upstairs elegance or down stairs proletariat, depending on their state. We begin by pulling a few random names of characters; these nameplates go on the side of the stage but to what end is unclear. Mr. Charles leads as the stooped butler Percival; he enforces downstairs discipline including church going. The servants debate Irish Catholics not serving in the war. The Irish may be funny, the church may be funny, and war may be funny, but for some reason not all three at the same time.
Upstairs we see the wealthy and morally bankrupt. There’s a romance and an unhappy marriage and some mild alcoholism and some trench warfare heroism but the story is hard to follow. Scenes change but the cast seems to speak in circles, hoping to corner a usable gag. Perhaps the furniture is moved because the gags have rolled under it; or perhaps because the red velvet chairs are funnier than the couch. I kept hoping to hear some of the audience contributed trigger lines from the preshow fishbowl; maybe that would have help move things forward. As it is, the actual PBS “Downton Abbey” offers more humor than this dud.
For more information on the Annie Russell Theatre at Rollins College, please visit http://www.rollins.edu/annierussell/current_season/index.html
