The School for Scandal at Classical Theatre Company

Robert Baddeley as Moses
(painting by Johann Zoffany, c.1781)

via Wikipedia

I almost walked out. To be honest, I always have reservations about sitting down to five-act plays, because I've ruined my attention span with the internet. However, a friend was particularly keen to see The School for Scandal at Classical Theatre Company, so I got tickets. When we arrived at our seats Saturday night, open curtains revealed an assemblage of random theater arts flotsam. Then the actors started playing with Barbie dolls.

To be fair, the theater company's press hinted at the need for lowered expectations. "This particular adaptation is going to involve a decidedly creative take on the play, utilizing only six actors to fill out a cast of 16 characters," they said. But I was not prepared for two of the characters to be a Barbie and a Ken doll, puppeteered by other characters. I was distracted, even outraged, by the lack of scenery. There were no costumes to speak of, either--the actors just wore (bad) contemporary clothing. I paid real American money for my tickets, and felt like I'd been had.

But that real American money only amounted to $25/ ticket--clearly not enough for a full 18th-century period production with costumes for sixteen characters. So I unclenched my jaw and settled in for whatever the company was offering.

I was glad I did. Even without a set to speak of, the actors had some unpainted plywood boxes and frames to interact with. The costume choices remain a mystery to me, though I suppose that the, um, affordable clothing helped make the production possible. 

The chief joy of the production was hearing Sheridan's words from capable actors. Two of the actors in particular, John Johnston and actor-director Philip Lehl, far outclassed $25 tickets. I was also tickled when I thought of Lindsay Ehrhardt's Mrs. Sneerwell as being channeled directly from Candace of Phineas and Ferb.

This was my second visit to Classical Theatre Company, and I enjoyed it even more than the first (The Marriage of Figaro). Their next production, The Circle, is another language-centric comedy of manners, which seems to be perfectly in their wheelhouse. I look forward to seeing it.