Joseph Stein’s comedy "Enter Laughing,"
now on stage at the Heights Players, began as a semi-autobiographical
novel by comedian Carl Reiner.
And while it is hard to believe that Reiner was ever as inept
and talentless as his hero, David Kolowitz (Michael Basile),
"Enter Laughing," like most of Reiner’s work, from
the big to the little screen, is enormously funny.
As the play opens, David is working in the machine shop of Mr.
Foreman (the perfectly cast Bernie Lippman). Foreman is sharp-tongued
and critical, but he takes a genuine interest in his young helper.
He wants David to marry a nice Jewish girl, learn the trade and
someday take over the business.
David, who is looking for a more exciting future, answers an
ad seeking student actors, and despite a laugh-till-you-cry audition,
manages to get cast in a show directed by the regal Harrison
Marlowe (Pierre O’Farrell), mostly because the star of the show,
his daughter, Angela (Gina Healy) has taken a liking to the unlikely
thespian. There’s only one hitch: David must not only pay for
this "learning" experience, he also has to buy his
own costume – a tuxedo that will cost him $10. Fortunately, his
devoted girlfriend, Wanda (Yonit Kafka) lends him the money and
David is on his way.
But not quite. David must still struggle with his skeptical parents,
Emma (Vicky Grubman) and Morris (Ed Healy); as well as Foreman,
his unhappy boss, who does not appreciate David’s new, erratic
hours and glaring inexperience.
David’s botched attempts at acting (he misses cues, subvocalizes
his leading lady’s lines, mispronounces words, overacts and does
not understand the difference between stage directions and dialogue)
create most of the play’s funniest moments. Basile has so masterfully
incorporated the tone and the gestures, to say nothing of the
Bronx accent, of Young Kolowitz, that even the most outrageous
scenes seem perfectly believable. Besides, the audience is too
busy laughing to worry about believability.
But strong runners-up in the funny scene category are those Basile
has with Lippman, who looks and acts like he just stepped out
of Yiddish theater. And Chazmond J. Peacock, as Marvin, David’s
friend from a business upstairs, gives the role a lazy buffoonish
touch that contrasts nicely with David’s vague but urgent ambition.
Healy and Grubman have the right tone and timing but are not
as thoroughly convincing as Basile and Lippman. And O’Farrell,
last seen as Eddie Carbone in "A View From the Bridge,"
proves that he can be just as effective as the straight man who
gets both our laughter and sympathy.
"Enter Laughing" has more scene changes than can be
easily handled by a community theater, but director Ted Thompson
manages handily with a luscious red-curtain backdrop and movable
sets (the Kolowitz kitchen, on- and off-stage of the Marlowe
Theatre, a dairy restaurant) designed by Bill Wood. Happily,
the sets are minimal, and the crew is quick.
"Enter Laughing" premiered at the Henry Miller Theatre
in March 1963. It starred well known actors Alan Arkin, as David,
Vivian Blaine, as Angela, and Sylvia Sidney, as Mrs. Kolowitz,
but the play ran for only one year. A musical version, "So
Long, 174th Street," which featured Kaye Ballard, George
S. Irving and, in the chorus, Susan Stroman, was even less successful.
Nevertheless, the play has an innocence and a borscht-belt-like
charm one misses in these more cynical times.
See "Enter Laughing" and you will exit laughing.
The Heights Players production of "Enter
Laughing" plays through March 21, Fridays and Saturdays
at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm. Tickets are $12, $10 seniors and
students. The Heights Players are located at 26 Willow Place
between State and Joralemon streets in Brooklyn Heights. For
reservations, call (718) 237-2752.
