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Hound of the Baskervilles
Reviewed by Deborah Klugman
Actors Co-op
Through November 22
When Tim Kelly died in 1998, a Playbill obituary noted that he was probably the most published playwright in America, having written over 300 works for the “stock, amateur and educational” market.
With amateur and/or stock being the operative words, it’s no surprise that Kelly’s adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Hound of the Baskervilles is, from a dramatic standpoint, a dead-in-the-water whodunit.
Kelly’s stiff and arid play compresses Doyle’s narrative into a single set melodrama, the entirety of which takes place in the drawing room of Sir Charles Baskerville whose mysterious and untimely death triggers the plot.
Holmes (Curt Bonnem) and Watson (Charles Constant) are summoned to the scene by Lady Agatha Mortimer (Christine Krebsbach), an associate of Baskerville’s and a former hospital colleague of Watson’s.
The bogus suspense revolves around the implied threat to the life of Henry Baskerville (Dennis Baker), Charles’ nephew and heir – either by virtue of the mysterious malevolent hound that is the family’s curse, or by unidentified real persons plotting his death.
A piece like this, devoid of irony and wit, can still entertain if played crisply and camped to the max. As the estate’s elderly caretaker, Mr. Bartholomew, Townsend Coleman does just that. His voice croaks, his hand trembles and he’s got a mad look in his eye. In a bad play, he’s the perfect red herring.
As his cryptic wife, Deborah Marlowe utilizes a tad of this burlesque approach, but doesn’t go far enough. As Perkins the maid, Francesca Fromano demonstrates that she, too, understands farce.
Under Moosie Drier’s direction, the rest of the ensemble, including Bonnem as the infamously arrogant Sherlock, perform competently but in too naturalistic a style to be match the otherwise lighthearted tone. Mark Svastic’s lighting and especially Sean Gabel’s sound create the requisite spooky ambience, but it’s impossible to get past Kelly’s cadaver-like script .
Actors’ Co-op, David Schall Theatre on the campus of the Hollywood Presbyterian Church, 1760 N. Gower St., Hlwyd.; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2:30 p.m.; through November 22. (323) 462-8460, www.ActorsCo-op.org Running time: 95 minutes with one 10-minute intermission.
