Editor’s Note: Tess Bown is a Theater Fairfield actor. She was not involved in the production of “The Real Inspector Hound.”
Tom Stoppard’s, “The Real Inspector Hound,” had this past weekend’s audiences buzzing with inquiries. Stoppard’s one act play of absurd reality was produced, directed and acted solely by Theatre Fairfield students.
This annual project is funded by the Jamie A. Hulley Fund for the Arts and was proposed by senior James DeSilvestri for the purpose of personal study. To this end, he served as the producer for the project.
“Hound was the first play I ever did in high school and I wanted to re-visit the role and compare it to my previous work to observe my personal growth,” said DeSilvestri. He also played Magnus Muldoon, a suspect in the murder-mystery.
DeSilvestri, as well as other theatre students, held a bold presence on stage.
“James asked me to be a part of the production as Felicity Cunningham. I felt honored to be asked and excited at the opportunity to work on this project with some of my closest friends,” said Ioanna Psaroudakis ’07.
Other cast members were seniors Jodie Pfau and Jonathan Perez, juniors Tim King, Elizabeth Thompson and Tony Dacosta, as well as Gary Pelletier ’09, and Kira Gustafson ’10.
“Hound,” though only a one-act play, is abundant with layers, innuendos and innovative form. This clever play-within-a-play features King and Pelletier sitting offstage, acting as two critics plainly watcing the play.
They comment and even interact with the actors and the play’s storyline. It demonstrates the elimination of ‘the fourth wall’ and the two played with a laughable pomp and matchless comedic timing. This literary device of Stoppard’s was not only well acted, but also well-received. It confirmed one of the play’s main intentions: to create a fog between the boundaries of reality and illusion, while forcing the audience to question who they think they are.
Actor and audience member Jared Mezzocchi ’07 remarked, “Stoppard’s genius script really stretches from realism and within this form of twisted reality the actors really lit up. It was obvious that the actors could feel the playfulness of the form – as an audience member that synthesis was a joyful one.”
The cast was able to take the play’s level of farce beyond simple parody and they poised many audacious performances.
The character of Mrs. Drudge, the matronly yet highly-adept manor maid, was played with a delicately nuanced balance of humor and thoughtfulness – the signs of a true comic – by Elizabeth Thompson ’09, a newcomer to the Theatre Fairfield stage with a very bright future ahead of her.
The cast was gallantly led by student director Kelly Henn ’07, who was selected by Desilvestri because of her innate sense of comedy, timing and potential.
“I knew she would be more than dedicated to the task,” said Desilvestri.
“She had a very challenging position because it’s always difficult to work creatively with your peers,” said stage manager Anna Stabile ’09.
With help from the cast, seniors James Burns and Christopher Swetchy transformed the PepsiCo theatre into a stunning English manor complete with dangling chandeliers. The elaborate set design was one of the most lavish ever created by students for an independent project. Burns created a very warm and inviting space, from the color palette to the set dressing.
On top of that, student costume designer Wendy Scola ’08 skillfully outfitted the cast as wardrobe manager.
“Theatre Fairfield students never cease to amaze me. Their energy and enthusiasm rarely leave their side,” said Pelletier, a lead in the project.
The $1,200 raised from Hound ticket sales will be put towards a Theatre Fairfield mission trip to Waveland, Miss. this spring.
This independent project was as cleverly executed as it was cunningly produced. Woven within Stoppard’s post-modern tendencies were some truly well-crafted student performances that resulted in an exceptional student project.
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