By Sheila Barth
BOX INFO: Two-act, two-hour musical comedic interpretation of Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest,” by Paul Gordon and Jay Gruska, appearing through Oct. 7, at 395 Main St., Stoneham: Thursday, 7:30 p.m. (sold out) ; Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 2 p.m.$50-$60; seniors, $45-$55; students with valid ID, $20. stoneham.greaterbostonstage.org, 781-279-2200.
Oscar Wilde’s social satiric comedy, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” takes a modernized, musical twist in Paul Gordon and Jay Gruska’s two-act, two-hour play, “Being Earnest, appearing through Sunday, at Greater Boston Stage Company.
The format is different, the costumes and set updated to 1960’s Carnaby Street, London-specifically, when the musical British Invasion took America and the world by storm. There’s no 19th century bustles, lace ruffles, and hand-held fans here. They’re replaced by designer Gail Astrid Buckley’s geometric patterned, short dresses, shiny white boots, mop-head haircuts and ponytails.
Despite the modernization of setting and characters, Gordon and Gruska painstakingly preserved Oscar Wilde’s language and plot, to preserve Wilde’s brilliant, witty dialogue and comedic plot of mistaken identities. And award-winning Greater Boston Stage Company Artistic Director Ilyse Robbins, who directed and choreographed “Being Earnest,” painstakingly selected an outstanding Boston cast, including Will McGarrahan, who pops up frequently, portraying several different characters within seconds, such as the righteous Rev. Chasuble, Lane, Merriman, and other incidental folks. His sometime split-second costume changes range from clergyman’s garb to that of a handyman, a mop-headed house servant, and more. Versatile star Kerry Dowling portrays Miss Prism and shines in ensemble numbers.
The play opens with a rousing ensemble prologue, led by Michael Jennings Mahoney, portraying Algernon Moncrieff. Accompanied by Music Director Steve Bass on keyboard and a four-piece band, Mahoney raises his fine tenor, especially in duets “No Romance,” crowd-pleasers “Brothers,” and reprise of song “Go,” with equally talented Dave Heard, who’s charming as Algernon’s friend, John “Jack“ Worthing. Portraying Cecily Cardew, Worthing’s young ward, star Ephie Aardema is a sweet, unspoiled country girl, who’s charmed by bad boy Algernon, while Sara Coombs portraying citified Gwendolen Fairfax, wearing mini-skirted, geometric dresses and tall, white boots, is a sharp foil to Cecily.
However, pure Cecily wants somebody with whom she can engage in “Bad Behavior,” she sings, while she and Algernon blend harmoniously in the duet, “Absolutely Perfect”.
Gwendolen loves Jack and the couple want to marry, but Gwendolen’s mother, stuffy, Lady Bracknell (nicely portrayed by Beth Gotha) insists on knowing Jack’s pedigree to determine whether he’s good enough to marry her daughter. Also, Cecily has a secret, which is incidentally revealed later.
Don’t miss this.
