Review: LEND ME A TENOR at Castle Craig Players

On Saturday, May 11, I had the pleasure of seeing LEND ME A TENOR put on by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Playhouse, in Meriden CT. Written by Ken Ludwig and directed by Pam Amodio, this farce has the audience laughing from start to finish.

The set is detailed, depicting two sides of a room, one the living room area, the other the bedroom. Plenty of closets and a bathroom are attached for entrances and exits. The entire set is well utilized.

The story, while containing some singing, is not a musical in the strictest sense. The plot line is about the challenges of putting on an opera (Pagliacci), when the promised celebrity lead tenor is suddenly not available, on the day of the performance in which tickets have already been sold. The zany attempts at the cover-up and subsequent confusion all around fuel this comedy.

David Macharelli plays the leading role of Max who works for Saunders (Arthur Canova), with the goal of making this opera succeed. The stage chemistry between David Macharelli and Arthur Canova is very tight, as both talented actors play off each other well. The fact that Max is dating Saunders' daughter Maggie (Katie Kirtland) has surprisingly little impact on the dynamics between Max and Saunders, which in itself adds to the comedy. Katie Kirtland is excellent in the role of Maggie, a young woman who truly comes across as la donna e' mobile.

The opera star Tito is played by Len Fredericks who performs with incredibly convincing Italian mannerisms and a spot-on Italian accent. David Macharelli is very skilled at imitating that same Italian accent, as acting within the acting, which further enhances the believability of Len Fredericks as Tito.

One of my absolute favorite local actresses, Kaite Corda, steals every scene she is in, excelling in the role of Maria, who is Tito's no nonsense Italian wife. Kaite Corda's stellar accent, voice, delivery, and mannerisms make Maria a totally convincing and highly comical character.

Oliver Kochol is great as the Bellhop who has no qualms about giving an attitude right back to Saunders, in a humorous way.

Why is Tito unavailable for Pagliacci? How does Saunders plan to remedy the situation? Will Max go along with Saunders' scheme? How will the Pagliacci audience react to Saunders' scheme? Why do the police get involved? What will happen in the relationship between Max and Maggie? Come to the show to find out!

For mature audiences, I highly recommend LEND ME A TENOR as performed by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Playhouse, in Meriden CT. It is scheduled to continue to run through May 18, 2019 on Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2:00 PM. For tickets, please go to Tickets.

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