“A quirky romance comedy of oddball characters that make you root for them. Miles Potter directs with a knowing wink in his eye. Martha Farrell and Gregory Prest are irresistible.”
Beverley Cooper’s ‘Humour Me’ is aptly written and smartly directed by Miles Potter. Here for Now bills the play as a rom-com, but it’s also more.
Teacher Evalyn Traynor (Martha Farrell) has lost her ability to laugh. She has no sense of humour. As a result, she does what anyone would do in this case. Go and find out why it’s happened. Evalyn makes an appointment with nerdy PhD graduate student Leo (Gregory Prest), who studies how the brain processes humour. He feels he can help Evalyn.
When the ‘therapy sessions’ begin, things spiral way out of control—at first, these moments had me scratching my head at Cooper’s puzzling text and wondering if something like this would occur in real life.
It’s all part of the fun that unravels by the end of the seventy-minute running time. There are plot twists I didn’t see coming, so keep your eyes open for them.
Miles Potter directs two solid actors with a knowing wink in his eye. He, the creative team, and actors set out to have some witty fun, which comments on how people seem to trust electronic gadgets to help fix problems. Think of Dr. Ho and all those contraptions he advertises on television to make people feel better. Through Leo’s study on how the brain processes humour, he places a weird-looking skull cap on Evalyn’s head with the hope of diagnosing her brain and why she can’t laugh. When I first saw the skull cap, I started quietly laughing, thinking that’s ridiculous.
Setting Designer Freddy Van Camp stages Leo’s intimate office space on a university campus. It’s tight. Stage right is his cluttered office desk with a rolling chair. Stage left is the La-Z-Boy chair with the machine on a table at the side, which measures brain waves. Louise Guinand nicely evokes the lights used in a university campus office. Keith Thomas’s sound designs are timely and executed. I liked some of the song selections during the pre-show setting.
Martha Farrell and Gregory Prest are irresistible as Evalyn and Leo. I couldn’t help but keep rooting for them amid their struggles. Farrell’s Evalyne is not a hypochondriac, but she delightfully unloads her issues on Leo with tremendous gusto. Prest presents an initially nerdy Leo who has trouble speaking and conversing with women on a realistic level. Leo’s relationship with his fiancée is on the rocks because he’s not transparent with her. There are moments in his office where Leo is underprepared and cannot answer Evalyn’s questions succinctly about her ‘issues.’
The final moment between Leo and Evalyn is quite touching. Without spoiling too much of the plot, Leo and Evalyn ultimately break through and get to the reason why she can’t laugh.
I left the theatre with a smile. Beverley Cooper knows a thing or two about winding a plot up.
Running time: approximately 70 minutes with no interval/intermission.
‘Humour Me’ runs to July 26 at Here For Now Theatre, 24 St. Andrew Street, Stratford. For tickets, www.herefornowtheatre.com or call (519) 272-4368.
HERE FOR NOW presents The Ontario Premiere
‘Humour Me’ by Beverley Cooper
Directed by Miles Potter
Set Design: Freddy Van Camp
Lighting Design: Louise Guinand
Costumes: Rebecca Chaikin
Sound Design: Keith Thomas
Stage Manager: Sam Snyders
Performers: Martha Farrell and Gregory Prest
Photo Credit: Ann Baggley Pictured: Martha Farrell as Evalyn Traynor
