Theatre Review: Glorious! at the 1000 Islands Playhouse

Peter Quilter's play GLORIOUS!, subtitled "The True Story of the Worst Singer in the World," is the comedic biography of Florence Foster Jenkins. A wealthy and philanthropic socialite with no musical or singing ability whatsoever, she was nevertheless firmly convinced of the beauty of her voice and passionately devoted to her art. She appeared on stage in odd outfits she designed herself. Despite the peculiarity and hilarity of her performances, she developed a large following in 1940s New York and eventually sold out Carnegie Hall.

Dennis Horn has done a really nice job on the set. He's filled the sets with massive bouquets of beautiful flowers that look so real it's impossible to tell whether they are or not. There's also a lovely cream silk shawl on the grand piano. Tim Fort's lighting is good, although I found the non-frosted lights in the sconces a bit distracting. His projections are excellent and add a great deal. Special kudos to Pam Staples for the dog.

Sandy Thorburn has done his usual fine job with the music. As for his sound design, the crowd noise in the Ritz Carleton scene seemed to confuse the audience but his choice of music after the death scene is inspired.

The costumes, also designed by Mr. Horn, are excellent, especially Madame's brown outfit with the mink stole and her final gown. Once again, though, the wigs look more like hats than hair. It might be better to use the actors' own hair even if it's out of period rather than distract the audience with the amateurish wigs.

The cast is generally strong. Viviana Zarrillo is very funny as Maria, a Ruth Buzzi-like Spanish maid. However, her performance as Mrs. Verrinder-Gedge unfortunately slides into caricature. As Madame's goofy friend Dorothy, Diane Stapley is thoroughly believable, even during the hilarious demonstration of her birds. William Fisher is an excellent actor and gives us a warm and supportive character as St. Clair, Madame's boy friend.

As Cosme McMoon, Miss Jenkins' accompanist, Adrian Marchuk does a fine job both musically and as the character. He never falls into stereotypical gay mannerisms. Darcy Dunlop is wonderful as Miss Jenkins. There were some nerves apparent in the first scene opening night, but they soon passed. Her vocal performances are hilarious, especially the finale. She gives the character a nice air of both sincerity and vulnerability. We can see why this genuine eccentric was loved by her friends and audience.

Artistic Director Greg Wanless has done a solid job of directing GLORIOUS! The staging is excellent and his cast for the most part makes the rather thinly written script believable and very funny. The production is entertaining with some nice serious moments. It's an auspicious beginning for the 1000 Islands Playhouse season.