By Katherine Beeson
Sunset Playhouse in Elm Grove is presenting one of Neil Simon’s most beloved romantic comedies, “Barefoot in the Park.” This production is directed by Donna Daniels.
Newlyweds Corie and Paul are proving the adage that opposites attract when they marry after a brief courtship. Corie is a bit of a free spirit while Paul personifies the serious lawyer, intent on furthering his career. They take up residence on the fifth floor of a New York City brownstone in need of some rather urgent repairs.
Trouble begins when the couple interacts with the upstairs neighbor; Corie decides he would be a wonderful suitor for her widowed mother and arranges for them to meet. Nothing goes as planned and when the young couple starts to argue about it, Corie decides she wants to call off their marriage. The term barefoot in the park is an effective way she compares their differences – she wanted to have fun and actually do said walking in freezing February while her husband considers it outlandish and foolish.
Paul and Corie (played by Keith R. Smith and Angela Bolmes) really find their onstage footing as the couple starts to bicker in Act II. Before that, however, the actors are so intent on saying their lines –- and speaking them so rapidly with much over-annunciation -- that they don’t pause long enough for their characters to honestly react to what each other has said.
Corie tries to explain her phone issues to a repairman (Joel Marinan) in a scene from Sunset Playhouse’s “Barefoot in the Park.”
Rick Richter does a nice job as neighbor Victor Velasco, the man who introduces Corie’s mother to his devil-may-care lifestyle and Joel Marinan gets his share of laughs with a brief comedic turn as the phone repairman. But the real gem is Paula Garcia as Corie’s mother, Ethel Banks. Garcia has a wonderful stage presence and does justice to this plum part. She is funny, touching and totally believable as she moves from depending on her little pink pills to taking an unexpected risk and finding, to her surprise, that she is enjoying her life.
This is a sweet, light comedy and a nice night out at the theater. “Shamma, shamma.”
“Barefoot in the Park” runs through March 30, 2022.