[NEohioPAL]Another Rave Review of MERRY WIVES at Actors' Summit

[Thackaberr at aol.com]

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Much heart in solid production of 'Merry Wives' 
By: FRAN HELLER Freelance Writer
In times of budgetary restraints, it is heroic when a local theater mounts a 
play with 21 actors. When that play is by William Shakespeare, it's even more 
heroic.

"The Merry Wives of Windsor," at Actors Summit in downtown Hudson through 
April 25*, is a congenial comedy in which the wives get the upper hand, and 
Falstaff, the "fat knight," gets his comeuppance, all in good humor. 
That humor is very much in evidence in director Neil Thackaberry's spirited 
production, starring Reuben and Dorothy Silver, in which all the actors seem to 
be enjoying themselves tremendously. The joy proves infectious, judging by 
audience response.

There are no lavish sets to distract, nor a range of English accents to 
decipher here, putting the emphasis solely on character and plot development.

The accessible language and the intimate thrust stage help make these 
wonderful characters even more knowable and likeable.

Not all the acting is uniformly great but, as an ensemble, it makes for a 
satisfying whole.

The comedy centers around Sir John Falstaff, a loveable rogue whose men 
plunder and rob the citizens of Windsor. Down on his luck, Falstaff woos two 
married women with an eye on their ample purse strings as well.

Incensed by identical letters Falstaff has sent each of them, the wives 
decide to teach him a lesson, and at the same time, prove their virtues to their 
respective husbands, one of whom is insanely jealous.

The daughter of one of the ladies is involved in a love triangle and defies 
her parents' wish for her to marry a French doctor or a simpleton

Though Falstaff is gulled by the wives three times, he accepts his final 
degradation and defeat with good humor. All's well that ends well when the 
daughter gets to marry the one she loves and Falstaff is invited for dinner.

Reuben Silver delights as the portly Sir John Falstaff, full of bombast and 
self-love, visibly swelling in size and self-importance as he contemplates his 
romantic conquests. While Falstaff is a rapscallion, he is also charming, and 
Silver's richly comic portrayal milks the humor and the humiliation in perfect 
measure.

Dorothy Silver is equally hilarious as Mistress Quickly, an old busybody who 
serves as the French doctor's housekeeper. No less a shady figure than 
Falstaff, Mistress Quickly accepts money from all three of Anne Page's suitors, with 
a promise to serve as an advocate for each of them.

Whenever Dorothy is on stage, this superb actress dominates it, beguiling her 
captive audience with a knowing wink, or a thumb's up, as if engaging them in 
a conspiracy.

Andrew Narten endows Master Ford with a maniacal, devilish glee as the 
jealous husband who disguises himself as someone else in order to discover 
Falstaff's designs.

Jeff Nichols triumphs as the French doctor, Dr. Caius, one of Anne Page's 
suitors whose deadpan fracturing of the English language with a perfect French 
accent is extremely funny.

The lanky Aaron Coleman perfectly suits the role of Slender in size and mien, 
a dimwitted, albeit agreeable, fellow who obliges his uncle by agreeing to 
ask for Anne's hand in marriage, with nary a clue as to how to go about it.

Rebecca Fischer, the onetime voice of WCLV, makes an impressive debut at 
Actors Summit as an avenging Mistress Page matched by an equally plucky 
performance by Sally Groth as the mischievous Mistress Ford.

MaryJo Alexander's costumes enhance the characterizations as well as the 
Elizabethan time frame.

This is the largest cast ever put together for a production at Actors' 
Summit. That they succeed as well as they do is a tribute to all involved.

*There will be no performances, April 8-11. 



The Silvers take on Shakespeare

A rogue and a conniver seem hardly in keeping with the real Reuben and 
Dorothy Silver, Cleveland's premier theatrical couple. But as Falstaff and Mistress 
Quickly, Reuben and Dorothy prove what consummate actors each can be.

Falstaff is a larger-than-life figure, with a girth as large as his ego. The 
stout Reuben says he wasn't fat enough in his own natural form. For his 
outsized role, Reuben wears a "fat suit," a theatrical term for padding that 
enlarges the belly and helps the illusion.

While Reuben has played other Shakespearean roles, including Sir Toby Belch 
in "Twelfth Night," he has always wanted to play Falstaff. This is his first 
time in the role, which is a standard of measurement for a lot of character 
actors like himself, says Reuben.

"Falstaff's outsized character and energy suit me better," adds the actor, 
who grew up in the "hot" acting milieu of Yiddish theater with its broad, 
strongly emotional roles.

The hardest challenge for Reuben, 78, is maintaining the energy for the 
demanding role. For both Silvers, it's learning the Shakespearean language. The 
couple hasn't done Shakespeare since they were young actors, says Dorothy, 75.

The possibility of stretching themselves was irresistible, especially to 
Reuben who has always been a risk-taker and ready to take on difficult, 
challenging stuff, says Dorothy. "The risk is you may not be 100% successful."

The Silvers enjoy working with director Neil Thackaberry. "We love these 
parts," they chime in simultaneously, hardly surprising for two people who have 
played man-and-wife offstage for 54 years.

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<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><STRONG><FONT size=3D3><S=
PAN class=3Dheadline1>Much heart in solid production of 'Merry Wives' </SPAN=
><SPAN style=3D"COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT><=
/STRONG></P>
<P class=3Dbyline style=3D"MARGIN: auto 0in"><EM><FONT size=3D3>By: FRAN HEL=
LER Freelance Writer</FONT></EM></P>
<P class=3Dcontent style=3D"MARGIN: auto 0in"><FONT size=3D3>In times of bud=
getary restraints, it is heroic when a local theater mounts a play with 21 a=
ctors. When that play is by William Shakespeare, it's even more heroic.<BR><=
BR>"The Merry Wives of Windsor," at Actors Summit in downtown Hudson through=
 April 25*, is a congenial comedy in which the wives get the upper hand, and=
 Falstaff, the "fat knight," gets his comeuppance, all in good humor. </FONT=
></P>
<P><SPAN class=3Dcontent1><FONT size=3D3>That humor is very much in evidence=
 in director Neil Thackaberry's spirited production, starring Reuben and Dor=
othy Silver, in which all the actors seem to be enjoying themselves tremendo=
usly. The joy proves infectious, judging by audience response.</FONT></SPAN>=
<SPAN style=3D"COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><BR><BR><FONT size=3D3><SPA=
N class=3Dcontent1>There are no lavish sets to distract, nor a range of Engl=
ish accents to decipher here, putting the emphasis solely on character and p=
lot development.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>The accessible languag=
e and the intimate thrust stage help make these wonderful characters even mo=
re knowable and likeable.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>Not all the a=
cting is uniformly great but, as an ensemble, it makes for a satisfying whol=
e.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>The comedy centers around Sir John F=
alstaff, a loveable rogue whose men plunder and rob the citizens of </SPAN><=
/FONT></SPAN><FONT size=3D3><st1:City><st1:place><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>Wind=
sor</SPAN></st1:place></st1:City><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>. Down on his luck,=20=
Falstaff woos two married women with an eye on their ample purse strings as=20=
well.</SPAN></FONT><SPAN style=3D"COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><BR><BR>=
<FONT size=3D3><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>Incensed by identical letters Falstaff=
 has sent each of them, the wives decide to teach him a lesson, and at the s=
ame time, prove their virtues to their respective husbands, one of whom is i=
nsanely jealous.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>The daughter of one of=
 the ladies is involved in a love triangle and defies her parents' wish for=20=
her to marry a French doctor or a simpleton</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcont=
ent1>Though Falstaff is gulled by the wives three times, he accepts his fina=
l degradation and defeat with good humor. All's well that ends well when the=
 daughter gets to marry the one she loves and Falstaff is invited for dinner=
.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>Reuben Silver delights as the portly=20=
Sir John Falstaff, full of bombast and self-love, visibly swelling in size a=
nd self-importance as he contemplates his romantic conquests. While Falstaff=
 is a rapscallion, he is also charming, and Silver's richly comic portrayal=20=
milks the humor and the humiliation in perfect measure.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN=20=
class=3Dcontent1>Dorothy Silver is equally hilarious as Mistress Quickly, an=
 old busybody who serves as the French doctor's housekeeper. No less a shady=
 figure than Falstaff, Mistress Quickly accepts money from all three of Anne=
 Page's suitors, with a promise to serve as an advocate for each of them.</S=
PAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>Whenever Dorothy is on stage, this superb=
 actress dominates it, beguiling her captive audience with a knowing wink, o=
r a thumb's up, as if engaging them in a conspiracy.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN cla=
ss=3Dcontent1>Andrew Narten endows Master Ford with a maniacal, devilish gle=
e as the jealous husband who disguises himself as someone else in order to d=
iscover Falstaff's designs.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>Jeff Nichol=
s triumphs as the French doctor, Dr. Caius, one of Anne Page's suitors whose=
 deadpan fracturing of the English language with a perfect French accent is=20=
extremely funny.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>The lanky Aaron Colema=
n perfectly suits the role of Slender in size and mien, a dimwitted, albeit=20=
agreeable, fellow who obliges his uncle by agreeing to ask for Anne's hand i=
n marriage, with nary a clue as to how to go about it.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN c=
lass=3Dcontent1>Rebecca Fischer, the onetime voice of WCLV, makes an impress=
ive debut at Actors Summit as an avenging Mistress Page matched by an equall=
y plucky performance by Sally Groth as the mischievous Mistress Ford.</SPAN>=
<BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>MaryJo Alexander's costumes enhance the chara=
cterizations as well as the Elizabethan time frame.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN clas=
s=3Dcontent1>This is the largest cast ever put together for a production at=20=
Actors' </SPAN></FONT></SPAN><FONT size=3D3><st1:City><st1:place><SPAN class=
=3Dcontent1>Summit</SPAN></st1:place></st1:City><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>. Tha=
t they succeed as well as they do is a tribute to all involved.</SPAN></FONT=
><SPAN style=3D"COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><BR><BR><FONT size=3D3><SP=
AN class=3Dcontent1><I>*There will be no performances, April 8-11. </I></SPA=
N><o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<DIV class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; TEXT-ALIGN: center" ali=
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<HR align=3Dcenter width=3D"40%" SIZE=3D2>
</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<P class=3DMsoNormal style=3D"MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN class=3Dcontent1><B=
><FONT size=3D3>The Silvers take on Shakespeare</FONT></B></SPAN><SPAN style=
=3D"COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1><FONT s=
ize=3D3>A rogue and a conniver seem hardly in keeping with the real Reuben a=
nd Dorothy Silver, </FONT></SPAN></SPAN><FONT size=3D3><st1:City><st1:place>=
<SPAN class=3Dcontent1>Cleveland</SPAN></st1:place></st1:City><SPAN class=
=3Dcontent1>'s premier theatrical couple. But as Falstaff and Mistress Quick=
ly, Reuben and Dorothy prove what consummate actors each can be.</SPAN></FON=
T><SPAN style=3D"COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><BR><BR><FONT size=3D3><S=
PAN class=3Dcontent1>Falstaff is a larger-than-life figure, with a girth as=20=
large as his ego. The stout Reuben says he wasn't fat enough in his own natu=
ral form. For his outsized role, Reuben wears a "fat suit," a theatrical ter=
m for padding that enlarges the belly and helps the illusion.</SPAN><BR><BR>=
<SPAN class=3Dcontent1>While Reuben has played other Shakespearean roles, in=
cluding Sir Toby Belch in "Twelfth Night," he has always wanted to play Fals=
taff. This is his first time in the role, which is a standard of measurement=
 for a lot of character actors like himself, says Reuben.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPA=
N class=3Dcontent1>"Falstaff's outsized character and energy suit me better,=
" adds the actor, who grew up in the "hot" acting milieu of Yiddish theater=20=
with its broad, strongly emotional roles.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dconten=
t1>The hardest challenge for Reuben, 78, is maintaining the energy for the d=
emanding role. For both Silvers, it's learning the Shakespearean language. T=
he couple hasn't done Shakespeare since they were young actors, says Dorothy=
, 75.</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>The possibility of stretching the=
mselves was irresistible, especially to Reuben who has always been a risk-ta=
ker and ready to take on difficult, challenging stuff, says Dorothy. "The ri=
sk is you may not be 100% successful."</SPAN><BR><BR><SPAN class=3Dcontent1>=
The Silvers enjoy working with director Neil Thackaberry. "We love these par=
ts," they chime in simultaneously, hardly surprising for two people who have=
 played man-and-wife offstage for 54 years.</SPAN></FONT></SPAN><o:p></o:p><=
/P></BODY></HTML>

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