"Taking It with You" at Sierra Madre Playhouse

---Theatre review

What a cast of characters – and I DO mean characters – reside in the new comedy play "You Can´t Take it With You" at the Sierra Madre Playhouse.

Set in 1936, near Columbia University, the home of Paul and Penny Sycamore teems with life and lunacy and a genuine love. We should all live in such a home, where each member supports the other´s eccentric hobbies and dreams, and where all visitors are welcomed with open arms.

Even the IRS man (Steve Holland) is received politely when he comes to collect years of back taxes from Grandpa (Stan Kelly) the wise and witty patriarch of the Sycamore family. Of course his plans and threats are thwarted by Grandpa´s insistence that he has "every right" and reason NOT to pay taxes.

The play opens in a lovely, antique-filled, 1930´s vintage living room/dining room (kudos to set designer, David Calhoun and crew) where the audience is quickly introduced to the "characters" and their peculiar pastimes.

Penny Sycamore (Linda DeMetrick) is busy typing her new romance novel set in a monastery. She began her writing career when a typewriter was delivered to their house by mistake. Later she takes up brushes and easel to paint a portrait.

Paul Sycamore (Phil Apoian) and Mr. De Pinna (Michael-Anthony Nozzi), a strange little man who arrived years earlier and simply stayed, are experimenting with explosives in the basement, for a July 4th fireworks display. More often than not, they enter covered with soot after an ominous boom from below.

Daughter Essie (Betsy Reisz), in a pink and white tutu, is making a new batch of coconut candy (that she sells in the neighborhood) in between practicing atrocious ballet moves. Her husband Ed (Teddy Goldsmith) is printing out flyers with cleverly worded statements by famous (and notorious) people to put inside the candy boxes.

The family maid, Rheba (beautiful Shamarrah E. Pates) sets the table for "dinner" (a true banquet of bologna sandwiches) and helps with the candy making while analyzing plot points in Penney´s novel.

Soon Essie´s big and boisterous Russian dance teacher, Mr. Kolenkhov (A. J. Russell) arrives for her lesson, and also Rheba´s permanently out-of-work boyfriend, Donald (James Fowler), whose main jobs are to run errands for the family, and stand in line once a week for his "relief" check.

At last we meet the one "sane" family member, daughter Alice (Christina Diaz), who has a real job in the big city, and whose new boyfriend is the company owner´s son. She knows it´s time for him to meet her family, but with relatives like hers…well, let´s just say, when Tony Kirby (Justin Okin) and his stuffy parents (Richard Large and Dale Waddington Horowitz) arrive for dinner – on the wrong evening – it´s laugh-out-loud, hilarious chaos.

And that´s before a team of government toughies arrive, set on arresting Grandpa for tax evasion, Donald for sedition, and Paul for armed insurrection. Oh, and don´t forget the tipsy bit-actress (Jodi Harrison) and the gorgeous Russian Duchess who just happens to be a fantastic cook.

Busy and convoluted, the plot is never hard to follow, and although the situations may be corny and lines somewhat dated, audiences will come away with that "feel good" contentment from a play that ends well.

Playing Friday & Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2:30 through June 6, 2009, at the Sierra Madre Playhouse, located at 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd, in Sierra Madre, CA 9024. (Plenty of parking behind the theater)

General admission is $20, with students and seniors at $17, and children under 12 at $12.

For reservations call (626) 355-4318 or visit www.sierramadreplayhouse.org