Departure Delayed

“Boeing Boeing” idled in the gate at the Old Globe theatre delayed for take-off. The 1960s French farce (more a comedy of manners) about a swinging American bachelor in Paris juggling three girlfriends roared through long runs in Paris and London and a moderate run in its New York engagement.

Clunky with exposition till forty minutes into Act 1, it is with the entrance of Stephanie Fieger, an Alitalia air hostess, that this biplane of a comedy starts to taxi toward the runway.

The evening finally moves down the tarmac with the entrance of Caralyn Kozlowski, Lufthansa hostess Gretchin, and “Boeing Boeing” takes flight. Ms. Kozlowski's voracious comic energy rattles boyfriend Bernard's plush towering bachelor pad. Her muscular chaos sets the play aloft with a delightfully maniacal lust for love, always playing against her driving sexual appetite.

Rob Breckenridge as Bernard appears to be in a different play, a sit-com perhaps. As his best friend, Robert, Joseph Urla, serves as the captain of the show's cockpit. Mr. Urla's eventual engagement in Ms. Kozlowski's dare devil diving approach to comedy finally pay's off in the long awaited for hilarity of Act 2.

As Bernard's maid, Berthe, Nancy Robinette's French dialect sounded more German than French and missed numerous comic opportunities. Liv Roth turns in a serviceable performance as the manipulative American sex kitten cum tigress.

Designed by Rob Howell and handsomely painted by Carole Payette, Mr. Howell's design offers up eight doors. The production never achieves the door slamming rhythm de rigueur to farce.

Mark Schneider recreated Britt director Matthew Warchus's original direction of the 2008 Broadway revival.

Photos:

Caralyn Kozlowski and Joseph Urla. Production photo: Craig Schwartz.

Caralyn Kozlowski

BOEING-BOEING
By Marc Camoletti and Beverley Cross
Directed by Mark Schneider

March 13 – April 18, 2010, Old Globe Theatre

Production overseen and originally directed by Matthew Warchus.

CREATIVE TEAM: Rob Howell (Scenic Design and Costume Design), Chris Rynne (Lighting Design), Paul Peterson (Sound Design), Simon Baker (Original Sound Design), Claire van Kampen (Original Music), Dan Rosokoff (Stage Manager) and Annette Yé (Assistant Stage Manager).

(619) 23-GLOBE [234-5623]

http://www.theoldglobe.org