The first thing you notice when the curtain goes up on Neil Simon’s The Sunshine Boys at the New Theatre Restaurant is the fact that you’re immediately transported to a down-on-its-luck hotel room residence in New York City. You’ll find yourself blinking really hard, because the set (by scenic designer Jason Coale) is that good. I found myself wanting to go up and explore that slightly seedy, intricately-detailed apartment where aging comedian Will Clark (superbly played by WKRP in Cincinnati’s Howard Hesseman) spends his days, reading the obituaries of his former vaudeville buddies in Variety and making acerbic comments to his nephew, Ben Silverman (Craig Benton), when he comes to visit. Silverman is also Clark’s caretaker and agent, but Clark does not appreciate the groceries Silverman amiably brings to him weekly, any more than he appreciates the Frito-Lay potato chip commercial audition that Silverman snags for him. (Clark forgets the name of the potato chip brand during the audition, and doesn’t get the acting job. “Because it’s not funny,” he explains to his nephew. “If it’s funny, I remember it. Alka-Seltzer is funny.”)
Clark saves most of his vitriolic scorn for his former partner, Al Lewis (played with great finesse by F. William Parker), and never misses a chance to let his nephew know how much he hated Lewis’s habits of poking a finger in his chest and accidentally spitting in his face as he talked. ("As an act, nobody could touch him," he tells his nephew. "As a human being, nobody WANTED to touch him!") It looks as if the vaudeville act of Lewis and Clark will never be revived—until the estranged duo is recruited to recreate a skit from their act in a television special on the history of comedy.
Laughs abound during the rehearsal of the skit in Clark’s apartment, especially when Clark persists in saying “EN-TERRRRR!” instead of “Come in” every time Lewis knocks on the door, much to Lewis's chagrin. The actual staging of their skit in the “television studio” is even more hilarious, with Heidi Van stealing the show as the buxom blonde Nurse.
Before the curtain even goes up, though, the Prologue of any play at the New Theatre Restaurant stars some of the finest food served anywhere in the Midwest, and the dinner menu for The Sunshine Boys is no exception. The Fall Vegetable Medley (slow-roasted butternut squash and carrots tossed with caramelized onions and red peppers), Fried Cauliflower, Haricot Verts (rolled in sweet cream butter with toasted almonds), Pasta Penne, Roasted Garlic Potatoes, and Polenta are a terrific supporting cast to the featured stars of the evening—Slow-Smoked Pit Ham, Farm-Raised Catfish, Grilled Chicken Tenders, and Roasted Beef Shoulder Tenderloins. For the adventurous, Executive Chef Mark Webster has whipped up Lamb Curry (with orzo-braised New Zealand lamb and orzo in a spicy curry sauce, garnished with coconut, golden raisins and apples, and fresh mint). Save some room for dessert, because the featured Chocolate Mousse Turnover is divinely decadent.
The Sunshine Boys runs through Nov. 7 at the New Theatre Restaurant. Call 913-649-7469 for tickets or go to www.newtheatre.com
Comments
I loved Howard Hesseman in WKRP, and it was very neat to see him in person in The Sunshine Boys. Also, as the review said, the food is well worth going to almost any performance at the New Theatre Restaurant.
Neil Simon's works on stage is a must see.
You're right! New Theatre Restaurant always has the best sets, perfect down to the smallest detail.
The show sucked but the food is excellent! Very dry and slow paced!
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