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The ICT in Long Beach previously served us a dish of deep thought with Red, a study of artist Mark Rothko and his work. With Don’t Dress for Dinner, the company caps off its 2013 season with the sort of play that deliciously frustrates the critical writer, a production whose lack of substance is absolutely irrelevant to its quality and capacity to delight.
Written by Marc Camoletti and adapted by Robin Hawdon, Don’t Dress for Dinner offers no psychological depth, no culture critique, no dramatic insight. Nor does it constitute a political protest, act of provocation, morality play, or topical analysis. In short, this is not the sort of play to prompt post-theatre existential discussions culminating with inebriated epiphanies into life, the universe, and, well, anything. It isn’t supposed to be. Don’t Dress for Dinner is a comedy of errors of the highest caliber, featuring an intricately knotted narrative for the characters to collide in. Events are set in motion when Bernard invites his mistress Suzanne over for a quiet weekend while his wife visits her mother. When she learns that Bernard’s best friend Robert is coming over, she decides to stay behind to have an tryst of her own. Into all of this enters a young lady named Suzette, hired through an agency to cook a Cordon Bleu-rated meal. But Robert mistakes her for Bernard’s girlfriend and persuades her to adopt the role for the sake of keeping up appearances…
I’m exhausted from writing out that brief synopsis…and it’s only the part of the play you can see above the waterline. Camoletti has his characters navigate a veritable maze of layered lies, with the huffing minotaur consisting of the omnipresent risk that the truth will out and carefully improvised schemes will unceremoniously collapse.
Hilarity ensues, of course.
It’s all clever and witty. The script is a display of comedic virtuosity and is performed with great agility by the finely-tuned cast. Marvelously entertaining, Don’t Dress for Dinner is an edge-of-your seat production that moves quickly and never tires. Who needs to think deeply when you’re laughing so well?
If you need a deeper lesson, here it is: Don’t lie. If you do, consider downloading a lie management application to keep the dishonesty from becoming disorderly. Then again…where’s the fun in that?
So, farewell to the ICT’s 2013 season. What a bang to bow out with.
Don't Dress for Dinner, by Marc Camoletti. Adapted by Robin Hawdon. On stage at the International City Theatre in Long Beach from October 9th to November 3rd, 2014. Thursday – Saturday at 8p. Sunday at 2pm. Call 562-436-4610 (M-F 9am – 5pm) or visit www.ictlongbeach.org for tickets and information.
Frédérik Sisa is the Page's Assistant Editor and Resident Art Critic. He is also a tweeting luddite and occasional blogger, and can be reached at fsisa@thefrontpageonline.com.
