STAGE REVIEWS : ‘WOMAN OF THE YEAR’

The Costa Mesa Civic Playhouse may have been too ambitious in trying to do “Woman of the Year.”

This contemporary musical about a high-octane career woman and her less-than-liberated husband (based on the 1942 movie starring Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn) would work fine on a big stage. The action shifts continually, moving from an awards ceremony to a morning news show (career woman Tess is a TV journalist) to a bar to Tess’ future husband’s flat to Tess’ home and a few other places in between.

Trying to put all that in a small space such as the Costa Mesa Playhouse is probably a mistake. The transitions (usually an actor or stage hand moving scenery around in the dark) are awkward and distracting.

The problems don’t end there. Director Pati Tambellini’s good-natured, rather casual approach does create a friendly, kick-off-your-shoes atmosphere, but it also leaves everything too rough. The acting tends to be sophomoric and the singing isn’t much better. The props aren’t slick and the costumes are just so-so.

As Tess, Paula Ertz presents easily the best performance--not a star turn or anything like that, but she has the strongest voice and is able to infuse her character with grit and humor. One can see why she would be so attractive to Sam, the cartoonist who falls for her.

It is hard, however, to see why she would fall for him. Hal Morse plays Sam as a kill-joy who seems to have fun only when he’s being sarcastic. There’s a slightly ambling, good-ol’-boy quality to Sam that, I guess, is meant to be charismatic, but it doesn’t seem to be enough to turn the head of a mover and shaker like Tess. Morse’s singing, unfortunately, also is not going to turn any heads, but at least he can carry a tune.