By Cindi Boiter
If you’re in the market for a fun evening – and if you aren’t you really should be – head out to Chapin Theatre Company for a night of all around fun with Nana’s Naughty Knickers, by Katherine DiSaviro and directed by Jane Peterson. The play is fun, the opening announcement is fun, some of the cast bios in the playbill are surprisingly fun, the actors are having fun and judging by the sold-out reception to Thursday’s opening night, the audience can’t help but have fun.
But don’t let the fun-for-all muddle your perception. This play is well done and the cast and crew have something to be proud of. Casting for this production was spot-on, led by Sandy Steffen in the role of Nana, aka Sylvia Charles; Debra Haines Kiser, who was made for the role of Sylvia’s BFF Vera Walters; and Ella Riley, who impresses me more and more every time I see her perform, playing Sylvia’s granddaughter Bridget who is staying the summer in New York City with her Nana before starting law school.
The interaction between these three women was, to put it in technical terms, a hoot! Kiser is one of the funniest people I have seen in a live performance, and she is unfailingly committed to her role. I’m always baffled by how real pros keep a straight face doing ridiculous things. But Kiser has a lock on this challenge. Steffen and Riley never break either, despite the abject silliness happening around them. Special kudos to Riley who not only has to wear an absolutely ridiculous example of Nana’s naughty knickers later in the play—certainly, a challenge to the ego of a beautiful young woman—but she also has to repeatedly exchange socks with Kiser in front of the live audience. Hint: she’s not putting them on her feet. If you know you know, or if you were ever a flat-chested teenage girl, you might know, too.
Supporting roles include that of Tom O’Grady, a NYC cop played by Andy Blackwell (don’t miss reading his playbill bio) and greedy landlord Gil Schmidt, played by Manny Moitoso, both of whom pulled off their performances without a hitch. Aurora Gastright and Beth DeHart show up in the second act looking sassy, and UPS men Charles Garren and Christian Banks show up looking like UPS men, which was their jobs.
DeHart also served as assistant director to Peterson while Cindy Binnicker served as her stage manager. Peterson gives both women ample props in her director’s note. But it sounds like Set Design was a team effort, given the many surprises the set requires. Hats off to Jim DeFelice, Tiffany Dinsmore, Michael Gastright, Len Lesslie, Tyler Zangla, Tom Kline, Chris Whitehead, and Jane Peterson for their successful efforts.
A note about the PG-13 rating for Nana’s Naughty Knickers: While this is not necessarily a play for children, there is nothing really naughty about the content of this play. The concept is that an elderly woman—someone’s grandmother—is making extra cash by designing and selling “sexy lingerie” for other elderly women. The outfits we see are only sexy in theory; they are actually quite humorous with the exception of Heather Van Pree’s costume, which is a bit racy, but this reviewer’s take on Aurora Gastright’s gum-popping performance in that costume is that she was adorable. Sure, there is cleavage at play here but many women are completely comfortable wearing far more suggestive fashions to dinner and a movie. The play was published in 2010 and might could use a light update, to be honest. That said, I think many children under 13 could see and enjoy the hysterics of the play (especially the set design) without ever noticing the implication of sauciness. I’d definitely take my 6-year-old grandkid.
Nana’s Naughty Knickers plays at Chapin Theatre Company at 830 Columbia Avenue in Chapin May 14 – 31. For times and tickets, which are selling fast, we hear, visit the CTC website.
(Full disclosure: Jane Peterson is a member of the board of directors for the Jasper Project and Theatre Editor for Jasper Magazine. She, and her dedication to the work, is also the reason Jasper has been able to review so many more plays under her direction. Please know that we did attempt to find a reviewer without ties to Jasper but were unable to. So, rather than opting not to review Nana, this reviewer stepped in and tried her best to remain objective. Also, if you are a theatre person with a critical eye we’d love to talk to you about reviewing local theatre for Jasper.)
