Skip to content

Cow Patti Theatre’s Perfect Wedding hits the mark

The wedding in the story is far from perfect, but Cow Patti Theatre’s production of Perfect Wedding is as near the mark as it gets.
27044lacombeexpressCowPatti022014
GONE WRONG - Characters console each other as the wedding in Perfect Wedding doesn’t go according to plan. From left to right are Valerie Barrett as Rachel

The wedding in the story is far from perfect, but Cow Patti Theatre’s production of Perfect Wedding is as near the mark as it gets.

Last week, Cow Patti opened its second show of the season, Perfect Wedding. The show runs through to March 2.

Director Walter Learning said that before the show started, he was experiencing the “First night jitters,” but after the performance ended he was pleased with the result. He added that it is somewhat unusual to go straight into the first night of a performance without first having a preview night to gauge how the show will be received.

“It came together quite well.”

Perfect Wedding is a brilliantly written farce where the comedy comes from the dialogue.

The witty wordplays and cleverly crafted exchanges between the characters create the comedy and also move the action of the play along.

Learning said that what a farce does is take a remotely possible situation and then stretch into something that is well beyond the scope of possibility. The plot of Perfect Wedding fits the bill, well, perfectly.

On the morning of his wedding day, Bill (Garfield Andrews) wakes up to find himself in bed with a woman (Susan Greenfield) he has never seen before nor remembers meeting.

As he tries to get rid of the woman and the incriminating evidence, his best friend and best man Tom (Timm Hughes) and wife-to-be Rachel (Valerie Barrett) show up at the hotel room.

Now, Bill is forced to enlist the help of his best man to get rid of the mystery woman and coerces Tom into pretending she is his new girlfriend. Which somehow ends up forcing chambermaid Julie (AnnaMarie Lea) to pretend she is someone else as well.

As the plot continues, the measures characters go to in deceiving other characters they are other people become more complex, and leads to some hilarious situations.

Hughes made his debut appearance in Cow Patti Theatre as the best friend and best man Tom. He said that Lea, artistic director for Cow Patti, had tried before to have Hughes perform with the theatre company, but was unsuccessful until now.

“It is a thrill to be here at last. It’s been a long time coming.”

Hughes also praised Lacombe, saying the audience on the opening night was terrific and very generous.

Tom’s back-and-forth exchanges with Bill create a lot of the meat and comedy of the play. Tom’s witty, sarcastic character plays well against the panicking, pleading character of Bill.

Playing the character who is constantly being put-upon is always fun, added Hughes.

He said he enjoyed Tom’s constant attempts to maintain control of the situation that only result in that control slipping farther away.

“It’s one of those classic roll types that everyone relates to,” said Hughes.

He added one of the things he enjoys about this play is that it stretches out reality in such a way that the audience doesn’t really realize how ridiculously unlikely the situation on the stage is.

“That’s why this play is particularly well-written,” said Hughes. “It does that, I think, quite masterfully. And you never question what the next bit of insanity is as you move along.”

For more details, show dates, times and ticket information regarding Perfect Wedding, visit www.cowpatti.com.

news@lacombeexpress.com