Hunter's 'Fever' heats up Intime

While most people associate hay fever with uncontrollable sneezing attacks, itchy throats, runny eyes and expensive antihistamines that never work, don't be turned off by the title of Noel Coward's Hay Fever directed by Marlo Hunter '99. This whirlwind British comedy about the unusual Bliss family and their house guests – while not particularly deep – is hilariously funny and well worth watching.

Written in the 1920s, Coward sets the play in the Bliss country home in Cookham, England. The household can best be described as a nuthouse where the four family members all talk at each other. but no one listens. The mother, Judith (Emily Holland '01), is a retired second-rate actress who cannot cope with the routine of domestic country living and dreams of returning to the stage.

Her husband, David (Damian Long '98), a below-par novelist, tries in vain to avoid his dysfunctional family and uses his work as an excuse to lock himself in his room. Their children, Simon (Nick Merritt '99) and Sorel (Karron Graves '99) take after their parents. The rather conceited Simon draws caricatures that parallel his tendency towards candid expression. Sorel, the only Bliss who notices her family's peculiarities, is equally quirky.

Since no one in the house communicates with each other, they individually invite a "friend" of the opposite sex for the weekend. Each guest arrives expecting quiet relaxation in the country and are very surprised to find a madhouse. Judith brings Sandy Tyrell (Jared Ramos '01), a young boxer who has an initial fancy for his host. David's guest is the young and ditzy flapper Jackie Croyton (Aliza Fogelson '00). Simon asks Myra Arundel (Majel Connery '01), an alleged "loose woman," and Sorel invites Richard Greatham (Todd Barry '00), a diplomat from London.

The plot is seemingly simple – the three acts take place in the living room of the Bliss home over a two day period. But because various amorous intrigues unexpectedly develop, it is also complex. Act I begins with the innocuous idea of houseguests, but as the play progresses, everything goes haywire. Judith and Sorel trade dates as do Simon and David. Hay Fever is essentially romantic musical chairs.

Sandy and Sorel end up in each other's arms as Judith suddenly walks in on them. David ignores Jackie and instead flirts with Myra. Judith has a tête-à-tête with Richard. After kissing Jackie, Simon announces to the circus that they are now engaged.

While everything happens at once, ironically in the end, nothing happens at all. In Act III the guests leave without even saying goodbye to their bohemian hosts. None of the "declarations" of love are real. All of the members of the Bliss family enjoy melodrama – the weekend for them is equivalent to playacting, rather than living life. The comedy ends with the family sitting down to breakfast, not even discussing the events of the evening before. They nonchalantly go about their lives, nothing changed.

The overlap between reality and the theatre becomes most clear at the end of the second act when Richard asks the crowd, "What's happened? Is this a game?" Judith responds with a line from one of her favorite roles in the play aptly titled Love's Whirlwind. Sorel and Simon then chime in with the other lines they have memorized.

Judith is at the center of the Bliss pandemonium. Holland does a fabulous job of playing this eccentric and bossy woman. Her vivid and curious facial expressions as well as her constant movement and exaggerated gestures fit this mad character. Her costumes, mostly flowing layers of chiffon in different shades of pink, highlight her eccentricities. While Judith reaches points of insanity without being unbelievable, Holland is in control at all times.

Bronwen Gilbert '99 plays Clara, the old overworked housekeeper, who the Blisses take for granted. Though her role is minor, Gilbert entrances the audience with her performance and convincing Cockney accent. Hunter expands on Clara's role, having her stay in character to clean up the house between acts. Clara's varicose veins, half pulled up stockings and disheveled appearance, as well her hunched over back and pained step are entirely convincing.

Barry adds depth to his character of the diplomat trained in the art of small talk and cocktail party schmoozing, but unable to assert his wishes or stand his ground. His great comic timing complete with hesitations and pauses transforms a potentially stuffy character into a funny individual overwhelmed by his surroundings.

Although in the director's note Hunter writes, "At the heart of this hilarious text is sadness," it is difficult to find the deeper meaning in Hay Fever. Perhaps Hunter believes it sad that the Blisses cannot distinguish reality from their melodramatic world, but this sadness does not come across in her buoyant interpretation.

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Coward's piece is like brain candy – you leave saying, "That was amusing" but do not sit and ponder the greater significance. It is a perfect break from studying, but not a mind stretching production. Still, with solid performances, enticing wit and romantic intrigue, Hunter and her cast provide a blissful pandemonium of entertainment.

'Hay Fever' runs tonight (8 p.m.), tomorrow (8 p.m.) and Saturday (2 & 8 p.m.). U-Call Intime.