PAM KRAGEN - Staff Writer
When Sean Murray and Bill Schmidt co-founded Cygnet Theatre near San Diego State University in 2004, one of the first shows they staged was the oddball little silent movie musical known as "Bed and Sofa."
Cygnet's production of the quirky Polly Pen/Laurence Klavan tuner was a good example of the style of theater Cygnet would soon make its trademark -- well-directed and well-produced stagings of eclectic and novel plays and musicals that might not otherwise see the light of day in San Diego.
Now, Cygnet has a new home theater (the recently renovated and much larger Old Town Theatre), and they've revived "Bed and Sofa" with a new cast and design, but the same results -- a well-directed and well-produced staging of an eclectic and novel … well, you get the idea.
"Bed and Sofa" is a strange but appealing three-person musical based on a 1926 silent film of the same name by early Soviet filmmaker Abram Room. The film is a love triangle comedy/drama set in Moscow during a severe housing shortage in the winter of 1926. Kolya is a brutish construction supervisor for the Bolshoi and Ludmilla is his lonely, beleaguered wife. Arriving in town by train one day is the optimistic Volodya, Kolya's war buddy who has landed a printing job but can't work until he can prove he has a place to live. Apartments are scarce, so Ludmilla and Kolya offer Volodya their sofa, and Ludmilla is soon swooning for her handsome house guest, who's kind, well-mannered and eager to spend time in her company. When Kolya is called out of town on a business trip, an affair begins between Ludmilla and Volodya and by the time Kolya returns, he's the one who ends up on the sofa. Eventually the ardor cools between Volodya and Ludmilla and she can't interest either man in her charms, until a surprise pregnancy changes the dynamic between the trio for good.
Room's original silent film was an experimental, propagandist piece meant to critique the hedonistic era of "free love" that had sprung up in Russia in the 1920s. The Pen/Klavan musical honors those roots, but spoofs it a bit with comic voice-overs between scenes offering seriously dated snippets of Soviet philosophy by Stalin, Trotsky and others. The musical (which does have dialogue and songs) also spoofs the silent film era, with a set, props, costumes, wigs and even makeup done entirely in black, white and shades of gray. The play has just one splash of color that's used quite effectively for dramatic effect.
Director Sean Murray has also directed the actors to use the exaggerated pantomime and expressions seen in silent films and Eric Lotze's blackout lighting magically completes the effect.
The musical's score is operatic in style with complex, layered harmonies that play on motifs that are used repeatedly throughout the 90-minute, intermissionless show. Pen's score is heavily influenced by Russian folk melodies with the big-finish style characteristics of musical theater. A three-piece, backstage orchestra directed by G. Scott Lacy, creates a chamber orchestra sound with just a few instruments -- cello, violin and keyboards.
Married San Diego actors Lance Arthur Smith and Colleen Kollar Smith star in the play as Kolya and Ludmilla, with L.A. actor Jordan Miller making his local debut as Volodya.
Colleen Kollar Smith is wonderful as Ludmilla, making her sad, overworked, philandering housewife a true flesh-and-blood being with whom the audience can sympathize.
As Kolya, Lance Arthur Smith is a natural in the silent-film style, with a rubbery, highly expressive face that easily transmits his quick-changing emotions. Unfortunately his height, white makeup and terribly unflattering wig make him look a bit like a 1940s film Frankenstein, but maybe that's the point for his sometimes monstrous character.
And Miller has a boyish, wide-open warmth that makes him ideal for the upbeat, sensitive character of Volodya.
All three sing the difficult score with precision and just the right amount of exaggerated emotion.
Andrew Hull's set, decorated by Bonnie L. Durben, is a wonder of period and black-and-white detail. Hull based his design on the set Murray created for the 2004 staging, but with more space, lighting and technical possibilities, the concept has expanded to fill the Old Town space with marvelously painted period backdrops and projections. Corey Johnston's costumes fit the time, location and color limitations required, and Peter Herman created the makeup and wigs.
In years' past, the Old Town Theatre was home to fluffy, mass-appeal musicals (like "Forever Plaid" and "Beehive") that drew a mostly tourist audience. Since Cygnet took over last year, Murray has offered a smarter mix of more sophisticated plays and musicals, including Stephen Sondheim's "A Little Night Music," Alan Bennett's English prep school drama "The History Boys" and now "Bed and Sofa." Because of its semi-melodic score, this intimate little chamber musical may not have the broad appeal of "Forever Plaid," but its concept is fascinating, it's professionally done and it has the sort of whimsical, optimistic ending that will leave you smiling.
"Bed and Sofa"
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays; through May 31
Where: Cygnet's Old Town Theatre, 4040 Twiggs St., San Diego
Tickets: $17-$46
Info: (619) 337-1525
