Friday was the opening of Director Pirooz Aghssa’s “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.”
The play delivered everything that was expected and more. It was a comical crack up from beginning to end, without being ridiculously over the top. Aghssa’s twist of changing the setting to the 1960’s does not hold back the purpose of the script and as promised it translates 100 percent.
The actors were on point with everything they were doing.
The opening of this show was very “lets get down to business,” and the cast proceeded throughout the production as if they were auditioning. Everyone had plenty of energy and it was a very lively performance that kept you waiting for what was going to happen next.
All the little details were what made the production a treat to watch. In the first song actors lined up in a single file line and all held head shots in front of their faces. The gesture from head shots to mug shots was just one of the many funny little details that made this play so wonderful.
Maxim Hunt, who plays the leading roll of Pseudolus, was an absolute wonder to watch. Everything was very clean, polished and believable enough to keep the crowd’s attention.
Hunt and Phil Simmons were an absolutely solid pair that were perfect together. Their characters of Pseudolus and Hysterium played off each other wonderfully in the give and take that permeated the show.
The lovebirds of this story, played by Krissi Hardy and Dan Helmer, preformed their parts perfectly. It was exciting to watch Hardy’s double performance of her character Philia. The variety of facial expressions that showed her dislikes and compliancy were amusing and very convincing.
Eric Hohnke and Emily Tipton play the timeless roles of the constantly arguing but loving parents. This duo presents a comedic routine of the wife being in power and the husband agreeing that her word is law, but in the end the husband does show some back bone.
Silent cues in the form of body languages and facial expressions that were scattered throughout this play added another layer to the show.
Some lines were delivered based solely on silent signs another character was sending. This show had a nice mix of different styles of humor, giving the audience a mixture of funny and dirty without being inappropriate or vulgar.
This play is very well done. The lighting, sound, dancing and pure raw talent that is present on stage makes for a quality show.
If you are in need of a laugh-out-loud comedy then “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” is right up your ally.
If you have already seen “Forum” then a second time would not hurt. It is one of those shows where the audience can catch something different every time.
