THEATER REVIEW : S.D.’s Bowery Theatre Serves Up Well Done ‘Butler’ Farce

“What the Butler Saw,” a clever British sex-farce by Joe Orton, is not the kind of play the old Bowery Theatre used to do.

The old Bowery was rough, gritty, quintessentially American, typified by one of the theater’s biggest hits, “When You Comin’ Back, Red Ryder?”

Welcome to the new Bowery, under the artistic direction of Ralph Elias, where the fare promises to be eclectic and, in keeping with the theater’s new status as an Equity venue, the quality high.

Professionalism is a must in mastering the intricacies of farce. And the show, starring Elias and his real-life wife Allison Brennan, under the direction of Eugene Kallman, delivers.

Orton provides a madcap plot, much in the fantastic mode of Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest” or a W.S. Gilbert libretto; at its best it works like a mannequin on which to drape witty observations about love, marriage, psychiatry and government bureaucrats.

The complications begin when Dr. Prentice gets Geraldine Barclay, a naive secretarial candidate, to disrobe by telling her a physical exam is part of the job requirement, only to be surprised by his wife and then a government inspector, just before he gets to the desired act.

Dr. Prentice explains the girl’s nudity by telling his wife and the inspector that the woman is a psychiatric patient, whereupon the inspector commits her and the duped wife continues looking for the secretarial candidate.

Dr. Prentice then gets a bell boy, Nicholas Beckett, to dress up as Miss Barclay. Miss Barclay, however, is also being sought after by the police to solve a case about some missing pieces from the statue of Sir Winston Churchill. And then it starts to get complicated.

Under Kallman’s direction, a fine cast--often in varying states of undress-- keeps the show moving at a fine clip for much of the evening.

If Elias as Dr. Prentice loses some of his steam as the pace escalates, Brian Salmon, as the doctor inspecting the clinic for the government, grows in comic stature. One can almost see the dollar signs lighting up above Salmon’s head as his colorful misassessment of the situation leads him to believe there may be a best-selling book in the making at Dr. Prentice’s expense.

Salmon’s very larger-than-life presentation, delicious as it is, however, threatens to overshadow Dr. Prentice, a subtle but important problem that hurts the delicate balance connecting the story. Dr. Prentice needs to prevail as the main character throughout the show and he should be more elated than exhausted--Elias seems to grow oddly quiet here at the end--when Orton wraps all the pieces up with a big loony bow.

The supporting cast is uniformly fine. Brennan plays Mrs. Prentice with charming flair. The looks she gives Dr. Prentice are as sharp as a razor. Heidi Wilson brings genuine innocence to the role of the wide-eyed Miss Barclay. And John Blunt and Todd Blakesley bring solid support to the parts of the bell boy and the policeman respectively.

The several swift exits and entrances required for farce are well served by Erik Hanson’s straightforward set design. J.A. Roth’s lighting delivers in the final frantic chase scene and Stacey Rae’s costumes add to the element of titillation with some filmy lingerie for the women.

The story, like the lingerie, is in the end slight, but appealing--all in good fun. The greatest titillation is that the unpredictability of the plot foreshadows the refreshing unpredictability of future Bowery choices. It holds out the promise of an intriguing season ahead.

“WHAT THE BUTLER SAW”

By Joe Orton. Director is Eugene Kallman. Music and sound by Lawrence Czoka. Set by Erik Hanson. Costumes by Stacey Rae. Lighting by J.A. Roth. Stage manager is Lois Miller. With Ralph Elias, Heidi Wilson, Allison Brennan, John Blunt, Brian Salmon and Todd Blakesley.