[Reviewed by Bruce Roberts]

I love a good farce. I can never get enough of sight gags, pratfalls, faulty hearing, slapstick, mistaken identity, rapid-fire and exaggerated movement, and multiple doors through which to appear, and disappear — all laced together with incredibly witty dialogue. These thoughts whirled through my head recently as I enjoyed a wonderfully animated performance of Ken Ludwig’s Moon Over Buffalo at Chanticleers, the excellent community theater in Castro Valley, California.

Directed by Jim Colgan and Bill Chessman, the plot is simple. An acting couple, George and Charlotte, played masterfully by Randy Anger and Dana Lewenthal, relegated to doing repertory, small-time theater in Buffalo, and other such acting backwaters, gets another chance at stardom. The famous director, Frank Capra, casting for a movie, is coming to watch them perform. The chance is theirs to mess up, so of course they do, because characters who do everything right just aren’t funny.

Comic complications arise because the relationships here are like accordions — constantly moving in and out. The main couple is at each other’s throats one moment, on the verge of breaking up, then madly in love the next. Their daughter Ros, played by Cynthia Lagodzinski, was in love with Paul (C. Conrad Caty), but left him for Howard (Frederik Goris) before finding Paul again. Howard was in love with Ros before meeting Eileen (Audrey Carstensen), who almost broke up George and Charlotte’s marriage, but now loves Howard. Love’s instability is a key part of the comic shtick here.

This is a cast of show-stoppers all. Every action and word was performed over-the-top, from the wildest argument to the most passionate kiss. A stare, a raised eyebrow, a double-take — all could put the audience in hysterics. Lindi Press, as the grandmother who sometimes wore her hearing aid, but mostly not, played subtle contrast to her wildly dramatic co-stars, thus stealing most scenes she was in. Randy Anger, George the leading man, shifted gears smoothly throughout the play from volcanic anger (no pun intended) to warm, sincere love, to a wonderfully comic drunk. His voluminous Shakespearean voice, and his quick, articulate delivery of complex lines provided an eloquent base on which this hysterical comedy was built.

In short, anyone feeling blue should scan the drama news for Ken Ludwig’s Moon Over Buffalo.  It’s usually playing somewhere and guaranteed to lift spirits. Anyone interested in quality community theater, should get tickets to most any performance at Chanticleers, Castro Valley, California. Put them both together, and a terrific theater experience awaits.

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You may contact the reviewer, Bruce Roberts, at brobe60491@sbcglobal.net.