Review: Stage West’s UNNECESSARY FARCE puts the cop in copulate
A slapstick comedy with revolving doors, both literal and figurative!
Yet another delightful performance by a talented cast of characters! Stage West continues to provide Calgary audiences with a great night out with friends and family to enjoy delicious food, good company, and excellent entertainment!
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Unnecessary Farce had a slower start, a result of a fair bit of build up required to establish the plot, but it gained steady momentum as each new character burst onto the scene. The show featured the classic ‘suggestive collision’ tactic, with regular physical encounters accidentally staged to make others believe there were sexual exploits taking place during harmless encounters. The actors did a top notch job keeping the pace up during such demanding physical exploits and had wonderful comedic timing as was required for much of the rapid fire dialogue volleying between the adjoining rooms established on stage.
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Each of the cast portrayed their individual persona beautifully and I was pleased to see several familiar faces from the local Calgary theatre community. The voicework, physicality, and chemistry was undeniably what led to the success of this performance. The set design was clever, featuring two connected hotel rooms where all action was visible throughout the show and enabling the cast to time their back-and-forth action accordingly. One of my favourite technical tricks was a bullet suddenly blowing out a light, which came as a complete shock both for the technically seamless delivery on the lighting / Sound Department’s side, and the surprise of raising the stakes on what had been seemingly low stakes action up to that point.
We left the theatre with full bellies and happily entertained by the antics during this wonderful performance! Don’t miss your chance to catch the show which runs at Stage West Theatre until November 8, 2026. There are plenty of great promotions for discounted tickets throughout the week including Tuesday Date Nights, Wednesday Senior Night, Thursday Ladies Nights.
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