Stage Write

  As mismatched lovers board an ocean liner audience members know there will probably be some partner swapping before everyone gets their happy ending and disembarks. Anything Goes has been entertaining crowds for 80 years and is on stage now at Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre. The show contains a selection of charming well-known songs, like “It’s De-Lovely” and “I Get a Kick Out of You,” by Indiana’s own Cole Porter. Timothy Ford plays the pining lead, Billy Crocker. He has fallen for a debutante who is out of his league and engaged to someone else. His desperate attempts to win her are sweet, but he seemed to be singing a bit out of his range during most numbers.   Deb Wims plays the brash night club singer Reno Sweeney. Her strength lies in the dance numbers and she’s particularly good in the title song, a big number that closes the first act. Sarah Joy Ledtke’s turn as the ditzy Erma was an unexpected delight. Her performance of “Buddie Beware” turned the throw...

Beef and Board Dinner Theatre kicks its 40th Anniversary Season off in style with the classic screwball comedy Arsenic and Old Lace. Mortimer, a young theatre critic,  learns his two aunts are murders and his long-lost brother returns all in the same night. Chaos ensues as Mortimer tries to keep anyone else from getting killed.  David Schmittou is excellent as the straight man Mortimer trapped in the farcical situation. His bewilderment and consternation at his family's madness is hilarious. He says more with one incredulous face than a dozen lines of dialogue could convey.  One of my favorite bits in the show are the playful jibes at theatre critics. Mortimer hates the theatre and spends hours lambasting new plays and saving time by "writing the review on the way to the show." You can't help but think that was a bit of revenge from a frustrated playwright.  Eddie Curry plays Dr. Einstein perfectly, channeling the long-dead Peter Lorre who playe...