‘Tenor’ promises a fast, furious farce

TOM TITUS

“My one concern is that our rehearsals are likely to disintegrate

into chronic bouts of the giggles, as there is hardly a moment to

breathe between the hilarious scenes.”

Every director should have such a problem. This one belongs to

Golden West College’s Tom Amen, who’s preparing to unleash Ken

Ludwig’s Tony award-winning comedy “Lend Me a Tenor” on local

audiences, beginning July 8.

“Lend Me a Tenor,” according to Amen, is “a wild romp of mistaken

identities, desperate measures and compromising positions.” Ludwig’s

farce revolves around the world of professional opera in the 1930s.

It’s the story of Max, a simple young man who becomes an overnight

singing sensation when he’s thrust into the breach to fill the role

of an absent troubadour.

According to Amen, “Lend Me a Tenor” uses a number of traditional

farcical elements that date back centuries to the days of Roman

comedy and Plautus, the brilliant Roman playwright whose works

inspired Stephen Sondheim’s “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the

Forum.”

“Ludwig employs all of the time-honored comedic tools of the trade

-- mistaken identity, witty word play, double entendre, slamming

doors and the tendency of farce to create a situation in which the

ridiculous is elevated to a level of utmost importance,” Amen said.

“Put all of these elements together and you are sure to charm your

audience and send them into fits of laughter,” he added. “There is a

reason that these gags have survived for over two millennia -- they

do the trick.”

According to Amen, the verbal and visual style of the play lends

itself to creating some very funny moments on stage.

“The numerous sight gags, combined with Ludwig’s wit and innate

sense of comedic timing, present a number of interesting challenges

that make the process of bringing this play to the stage a real

hoot,” he said.

Veteran Golden West College actor Mark Bedard, recently seen as

Sky Masterson in the college’s production of “Guys and Dolls,” is

cast in the role of Max, along with Christa Mathis, Bruce Alexander,

Christian Navarro, Abbie de Vera, Kalinda Younger, Judy Gish and Tony

Torrico.

“There are some terrific actors involved in this project, and we

are having a wonderful time working on it,” Amen said. “We’re

confident that our audiences are going to love what they see.”

They’ll be able to see it July 8-9 and 15-16 at 8 p.m. and July 10

and 17 at 3 p.m. in the Mainstage Theater on the Golden West campus.

Tickets, at $11 general admission and $9 for students and senior

citizens, and may be reserved by calling (714) 895-8150.

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Independent.