The old saying, “There’s no business, like show business,” rings true with Lancaster Opera House’s, located at 21 Central Ave., latest production, Noises Off.

Noises Off is a play within a play and all of the miscommunications that mishaps that occur backstage and onstage during rehearsal and throughout the production.

Act I opens with the dress rehearsal of the production of Nothing On. The cast is less than stellar; missing entrances and exits, forgetting cues and props, just to name a few, most notably forgetting a plate of sardines. The audience sees the production from the view of the stage.

Most notably, the contact scene is filled with hilarity.

Act II is a month after the play has premiered. It shows the backstage view of the theatre and what is going on. The performers are pulling no stops at displaying their backstage antics, and the work place is slowly deteriorating with the relationships. It’s slapstick comedy at its finest, not to mention everyone is exposing their drawers in one way or another.

Act III shows the stage as presented to the audience at an evening performance two months after Act II. Everyone can see that there is friction with each and every cast member and the cover-ups following the mishaps on stage are irreparable and cause a cataclysmic scenario.
I was thoroughly impressed with this production by the stage presence. By stage presence I mean the actual presence of the stage.

I have been attending Lancaster Opera Productions for many years. Never once have I seen a two-story house produced on the Lancaster Opera Stage. It was elaborate. In acts I and III the audience saw a living room with stairs and seven doors. In Act II, the audience sees the production side of things, behind the stage, complete with all the nuts and bolts and pressboard exposed.

One thing that is synonymous with mentioning the Lancaster Opera House productions is the amazing use of the entire theatre. In most productions, and it especially holds true with Noises Off, the audience space is utilized to the performance’s advantage. Nothing goes to waste.

Both the set and the actors impressed me tremendously. All of the actors did a tremendous job reciting the same lines like “Groundhog Day,” and remembering which prop to grab, or which one to “forget” to take, or when not to exit or when to show up, etc. That requires an immense amount of concentration and memory.

Each actor was cast perfectly in their part.
A standout performance was given by Justyne Harris, who played Brooke Ashton. Brooke plays Vicki on stage in Nothing On and her characters are stereotypical to the blonde hair color. She was naïve, unsuspecting and at times childlike. Her portrayal as Vicki in the play within the play was perfect as she overacted and you could tell got the part for one reason only.

Harris’ role is the exact opposite of who she really is, as she is a professor of psychology at Jamestown Community College.

Throughout the entire show, there were sounds of laughter in the theatre. Noises Off will leave you in stitches.

Warning though, this is not a show to bring children as there are adult themes. A few swear words are dropped and sex is a major theme, along with the ever-present sardines.

Noises Off, produced by Rocking Horse Productions, will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 23 and Saturday, April 24, and at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 25.

Tickets are $18 adults and $16 seniors and students.

For more information, call the Lancaster Opera House at 683-1776, or visit www.lancopera.org.

---

Tell Us what You Think: