By Laila Casiano | Staff Writer

“Noises Off,” was my first A-State theater production, and it did not disappoint.

The show is a play within a play in which the ‘actors’ on stage go from camaraderie to dissolution in exaggerated and comical manners. 

The first act depicts the final dress rehearsal of the play “Nothing On.” It seems like a normal play until the audience hears someone yelling from the back of the auditorium. Lloyd, the director for “Nothing On,” gives feedback to the actors from the audience.

Lloyd, played by Trey Moore, begins to move around by going down the steps of the auditorium and swiftly heads toward the stage.

Having an actor be so close to the audience was a fun and unique idea I really appreciated, as it felt interactive. He passed by me at one point because I was seated at the end of my aisle.

In Act 2 (my favorite), the setting takes place all “backstage,” opening with a sense of urgency and panic over Dotty and Garry hiding and locking themselves in their dressing room.

Act 2 takes place a month after Act 1, so a lot of the established friendships and relationships were now falling apart. The alluded “secret” relationship between Dotty and Garry is now over and coming to a shock to the audience, Lloyd cheated on Poppy. While Lloyd is too busy going after Brooke, Poppy attempts to tell him multiple times that she is pregnant with Lloyd’s baby.

The way she reveals this information surprised me. After being frustrated with his constant attempts to ignore her, she shouts it out loud for everyone to hear. I remember grabbing my friend’s hand in utter shock over Poppy’s massive truth bomb.

Michael Joseph, playing Garry, was the star for me in this act. Their broad range of facial expressions and his over-exaggerated wallowing, angry stomping and hostile marching were hilarious. 

At times, it felt like I was watching a silent film. The cast amazed me with their ability to communicate the anger, rage, confusion and sadness their characters felt without having to speak a word.

As for my favorite character, that honor easily goes to Selsdon, played by Luke Holt. Although Garry was the star for Act 2, Selsdon was the most comical and endearing character.

Selsdon was hard of hearing, so just the running joke of everyone in the cast shouting his lines only for him to get it wrong in the end was hilarious. 

We see this in Act 3, in the last few minutes of the show where everything has already gone wrong. In a final attempt to preserve the little bit of composure they have left, they all encourage Seldson to “bring the production home,” but of course, he says his line wrong. 

The characters’ absurd and immature choices constantly surprised me and I was continuously laughing at the ongoing “inside” jokes the production had throughout. These jokes do a great job of endearing the audience to the characters.

However, with how strong Act 2 was, Act 3 fell a little flat in carrying the momentum. If you didn’t pay attention to the playbill on the specific date differences between each act, you would get a bit confused about the relationships between the cast members. 

This is made worse by how distant everyone becomes from one another, especially between Garry and Dotty. 

Besides that, this was a wonderful production, one that will guarantee you a laugh, a surprise and sympathy for the events laid out for these chaotic, dramatic and overly sensitive characters.

Official Score: 9/10

Categories: Arts & Entertainment