'Shakespeare' in Mountain View 'Shakespeare' in Mountain View (January 28, 2005)

TheatreWorks opens Ken Ludwig comedy

By Julie O'Shea

It's been a bit too long since TheatreWorks has given us a comedy worth sinking our teeth into.

While Ken Ludwig's "Shakespeare in Hollywood" isn't exactly a laugh-a-minute production, director Robert Kelley still manages to find ways to tickle our funny bone more than a few times, thanks in part to a couple of mischievous spirits from another world.

The show had its West Coast premiere at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts last weekend.

Ludwig, who wrote "Lend Me A Tenor and "Moon Over Buffalo," based his play-within-a-play on the making of Max Reinhardt's 1935 film version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." Although several Hollywood icons grace the stage - including Jimmy Cagney, Joe E. Bron and Dick Powell -- it is the Bard's dynamic duo from "A Midsummer Night's Dream," Oberon and Puck, who end up making this show worth our while.

Ludwig weaves in portions of Shakespeare's "Dream" into his own play's plot sequence, including swooning lovers, an enchanted flower and a bit with a donkey.

But he relies so much on Shakespeare's work that he fails to develop his own story and presents us with half-hearted dialogue that is only mildly amusing at times.

There are some terrific early moments in the TheatreWorks production; however, it isn't until the King of Fairies and his fun-loving sidekick materialize that things really pick up.

Don Carrier as Oberon and Rebecca Dines as Puck give the show the extra push it is so desperately needs during the first half hour. The two are fantastically cast. Dines, who last appeared on the Mountain View stage earlier this season in "Living Out," is hardly recognizable as the star-struck prankster. And Carrier is awe-inspiring, letting his lines fall with a fierce passion.

At the start of the show, Austrian-born director Max Reinhardt (Gerry Hiken) has just landed in Tinseltown in the hopes of convincing the bosses at Warner Brothers to fund the film version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream." He is greeted by screaming fans, wannabe actors and even a red-carpet media gossip (Suzanne Grodner, who seems to be channeling Joan Rivers.)

Things run amok when Reinhardt's two lead actors, Victor Jory and Mickey Rooney, pull out of the film at the last minute. The director seems on the verge of a heart attack but is saved by a little magic.

A wrong turn on their way home has Oberon and Puck popping onto the set of Reinhardt's movie, where they wow the other actors with their great command of Shakespearean dialogue.

Naturally, they are immediately offered the leads.

"Shakespeare in Hollywood" is an imaginative take on one of Shakespeare's greatest works, and one needs only to travel to Castro Street to see it.

E-mail Julie O'Shea at joshea@mv-voice.com

Information

What: TheatreWorks presents "Shakespeare in Hollywood," by Ken Ludwig Where: Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St. When: Tuesdays 7:30 p.m. (No performance Feb. 8); Wednesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m. Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. (8 p.m. only Feb. 12); Sundays 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. (2 p.m. only Feb. 6 and Feb. 13); Closes Feb. 13 Cost: $20-$50 Call: 903-6000 or visit theatreworks.org

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