First of Gateway’s three-show ‘Community Spotlight Series’ runs July 11 and 12
Neil Simon’s classic comedy “London Suite” will run at Gateway Playhouse in Somers for three shows on two days, July 11 and 12. The show encompasses four one-act plays, all set within the same London hotel room, and detail the hilarious happenings of each guest experience. From romantic mishaps to family chaos, Simon’s signature humor shines through in this collection of stories about love, misunderstandings and second chances.
Directed by Ryan Daly, who directed the Gateway’s productions of “The Man Who Came to Dinner” and “Much Ado About Nothing,” with assistant director Janelle Hawkes, the show is part of the Gateway’s Community Spotlight Series, three popular plays with scaled-down settings that help round out the Gateway’s first-ever, all-musical MainStage Season. This is Daly’s first experience working on a play by Simon, who also famously wrote “The Sunshine Boys,” “Brighton Beach Memoirs,” “The Odd Couple,” and many more.
“I have a real appreciation for his work. He has a great ear for dialogue,” said Daly. “For an actor, his dialogue is easy to learn and his characters are highly relatable, not cartoonish.”
“London Suite” is one of three of Simon’s “Suite” plays; the others being “Plaza Suite” and “California Suite.” Daly believes “London Suite” is the funniest of the three. The four acts detail the following:
· “Settling Accounts:” A Welsh writer charges his long-time business manager of stealing his money.
· “Going Home:” An American daughter tries to convince her widowed mother, abroad for a shopping trip, to spend an evening with a rich Scotsman.
· “The Man on the Floor:” Married New Yorkers have misplaced their tickets to Wimbledon and are about to lose their suite to actor Kevin Costner who needs it immediately.
· “Diana and Sidney:” Characters from Simon’s “California Suite,” Diana, a famous actress, and Sidney, her bisexual ex-husband, see each other for the first time in years. He’s in love with someone else; she still loves him.
Daly’s cast is filled with a mix of familiar faces seen at the Gateway, such as Joe Chialastri, Andrew Czekalski and Victoria Biron, as well as new performers like Jacob Van Tine, Ginger Liberatore and Maria Black. In order to accommodate as many actors as possible who came to audition, Daly devised additional characters to create an entire hotel “staff,” such as chambermaids, to help transition scene changes.
Performances are 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, July 11 and 12, and a 1 p.m. matinee on July 12. Tickets for all Community Spotlight performances are only $15 and can be purchased at GatewayByTheBay.org and at the Karen S. Sutherland Box Office 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Gateway Playhouse is located at 738 Bay Ave. in Somers Point. More information and tickets can be found at GatewayByTheBay.org or call the box office at 609-653-0553.
