October 12, 2011 – To be part of the audience at a taping of the I Love Lucy show – how fun would that have been? If you think lots, here’s your chance to travel back to the 1950s and place yourself behind the cameras right at a time when the famous red head and the Cuban musician where at the top of their careers.
The Greenway Court Theatre is presenting I Love Lucy – Live On Stage, a comedy tribute to the most popular and longest-running television show in history. With Bill Mendieta as Ricky Ricardo, Sirena Irwin as Lucy, Bill Chott as Fred Mertz, and Lisa Joffrey as Ethel Mertz, the play allows you to watch the “filming” of two episodes of I Love Lucy: “The Benefit” and “Lucy Has Her Eyes Examined.”
To be honest, it takes a few minutes to get over the shock of two actors playing Lucy and Ricky – such is the imprint of the famous faces in our minds. But after a while, the mind and eyes adjust. Then you realize that Mendieta does make a rather handsome Ricky, performing him with an accent just as cute as the original, and Irwin is absolutely fantastic mimicking the facial and body gestures of Lucy Ricardo. The only let down: Mendieta’s performed “Cuban” accent is great, but his English accent while singing Spanish songs - not so much. (This, however, you will notice only if you speak Spanish.)
Between “tapings,” the audience is presented with the advertisement campaigns of the 1950s, something really funny to our consumer and technological perspectives of the 21st century. The play also counts with a live band on stage. Those of you in the Los Angeles Salsa music scene may recognize trumpet player Jonathan Bradley from seeing him perform around town.
As a whole, I Love Lucy Live On Stage is delightful and makes one laugh continuously, a great job by director Rick Sparks. It will run Wednesday through Sunday until December 30.
The Greenway Court Theatre is located at 544 N. Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036. Tickets are $34 and can be purchased by calling 800.595.4849 or online at http://www.ilovelucylive.com
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