Picasso At The Lapin Agile

Reviewed by Holly Bartges

Nestled in Lafayette’s historic district lies a bejeweled gem, The Mary Miller Theatre. Recently the theatre board officially made The Lafayette Theatre Company its official theatre in residence, and rightfully so. Definitely, it is an honor for the theatre, and most definitely an honor for the Company, and a shining spot in the Colorado theatre world.

The building constructed in 1892 served as a church maintaining that church look of the late 1800s. In 1964, it became a library, and then it became a theatre. Well maintained, groomed and polished on the inside the 114-year ol building serves its community well, and with pride, as a gorgeous space for a strong theatre company.

Wrapping up a three week run of Steve Martin’s imaginary fantasy of Picasso At The Lapin Agile, the play directed by skillfully precise Ian Gerber played to sold out houses. He confirmed the house seats 70 but they frequently need to add additional chairs.

The Lapin Agile (Nimble Rabbit) fit so snugly and warmly within the walls of the proud building, there is the wanting to think it is always there and not just a set, especially with Freddie, (Gil Shalit) the bartender. Long before the play actually began, Freddie graciously welcomed customers to his bar as he diligently wiped down the bar and tables, filled bowls full of pretzels, assured two boys it was OK to eat them, then mockingly reacted when they finished the bowl and it was necessary to refill the pretzels as the play was about to begin. One customer found himself wiping glasses when he discovered he had no money. Quietly and patiently, Freddie monitored the glasses for spots, encouraging the customer to re wipe the glasses when he found one. Shalit gave Freddie such an easy going demeanor, taking such great care of his bar, one would expect to find it running smoothly any night of the week.

Into the mix clamors a 25-year old physicist with wild hair and wild eyes. He’s to meet a red haired woman at the Bar Rogue. When Freddie informs him, he was at the Lapin Agile; the young man shows no sign of being in the wrong place. She’ll find him, he insists, because she thinks like he does. Patrick Collins maintains the wild-eyed look of Albert Einstein throughout the entire 90-minute play. At times looking as though he is lost in a completely different universe, and certainly could not be paying attention to anyone, Einstein never misses a trick. Freddie’s bafflement is obvious when the young Einstein gives him quick answers to complicated payment issues.

Stuart Goldstein gave Gaston, an old man and a bar regular, the attitude he must be a permanent fixture, entering conversation whether he invited or not, frequently having to run out to pee, caressing an all knowing grin of belonging. While Einstein sees an intricate pattern in a painting over the bar, pragmatic Gaston saw five sheep, clouds and a meadow.

Sally Nell Clodfelter provided Germaine, Freddie’s wife, with sexy, confident bravado. Quick thinking, open, Germaine made her relationship with Freddie known as solid.

Suzanne (Alexandria St. Aubin) wanders in looking for Picasso. She met him briefly two weeks ago and knows he frequently hangs out there.

When Picasso (Matt Ellison) does come, and doesn’t remember meeting Suzanne, she almost leaves, but with a character dance of comedy, she stays. St. Aubin in a costume that had better fit snugly and a coquettish intelligent but-lets-have-fun character.

The time is 1904, the beginning of a new Century. The Lapin Agile is in Paris. Conversation flies with the expectation of something big getting ready to happen. It’s a new time. Einstein works on a book that the others have difficulty comprehending because it is isn’t funny. It is one year before Einstein published his first paper on the theory of relativity. It is also a year away from Picasso entering his Rose Period.

With Martin’s fractured mind running full tilt with the dialogue, this cast kept the pace; the characters in this cast were all diligently wonderfully defined and great fun. They never missed a trick. Einstein’s clever repartee on why the letter E is the only letter in the alphabet that would make a pie was remarkably fresh on target and hysterical.

Even though Picasso was first produced in 1993, this production treated it as though it had never before been done. They dove into their characters and lines as though being spoken for the first time. That’s noteworthy.

Einstein and Picasso throw futuristic thoughts back and forth taping into something they almost can get their eye teeth around while most of the others have a sense of something is coming but with both feet planted in 1904. This leads to very funny sequences, mismatched wording laced with confusion. Picasso and Einstein meld into ideas of things to come that could work if the mind is stretched far enough.

There has to be the other side, of things that won’t work. Schmendiman takes care of that very nicely. Lunging into the bar in a hyper frenzied state, eyes wide open, dressed in mismatched conflicting plaids, Chris Newby gives Charles D. Schmendiman a bushel of energy exploding with ideas that will never come to fruition. Everyone seems to understand that except Newby’s carefully constructed Schmendiman.

Sagot a smooth talking art dealer played handsomely by Bill Graham smirks with pride over the Matisse he just purchased. It’s not the picture itself that makes it great. It’s the frame establishing the boundaries. Which always leads them back to the five sheep painting over the bar.

To everyone’s surprise, Einstein’s redheaded friend does appear, The Countess, deliciously played by Cathy Ode. Einstein was right. She knew exactly where and how to find him.

Ode switches identities as A Female Admirer, rushing in, gushing over Picasso until she realizes he isn’t Schmendiman, leaving as quickly as she arrived with a trail of laughs in her wake.

Martin’s wacky mind wanderings turn his imagination up side down and sideways, and the cast does him justice.

Pondering new places and new times give opportunity for the not so far fetched idea of time travel, and a Visitor finds his way. With the distinct moves of the King of Rock, Elvis Presley, Evan Marquez captures the intent with finesse. He doesn’t see five sheep in the painting. He sees five women.

The Lafayette Community Players, established in 1996, recently changed their name to The Theatre Company of Lafayette. They are a theatre company to be reckoned with, attracting actors from all over the Front Range area, choosing plays worth seeing and experiencing, and definitely worth driving to Lafayette, which after all isn’t that far from downtown Denver.

It is too bad the run for Picasso ended up being so short. It was excellently produced in every way. Brian Miller’s magical lighting design captured the varied moods. Rick Hays set design immediately became more than a design. It was sheer delightful atmosphere for The Lapin Agile, which still exists in Paris. Picasso did frequent the community bar often. It was Martin’s imagination rather than travel that places Einstein there, but the meeting of their minds mixed in with a mix of Martin is classic comedy. Scrunched in with the fast paced one-liners lies kernels of intriguing thoughts of genius, creativity, and celebrity. Martin never allows the conversations to get bogged down. As with any group of diverse people, the interests and perspectives of the characters deliberately and easily changes direction with surprising twists.

Although the Lapin Agile bar is closed at the Mary Miller Theatre, the Theatre Company of Lafayette is already getting into gear for their next production, which will be in collaboration with the Longmont Theatre Company’s Taste of Shakespeare. Ed Schoenradt will be directing Much Ado About Nothing. In June and July the Bard’s witty play will travel among various theatres along the Front Range. Keep an eye on it. The Theatre Company of Lafayette has neatly inserted quality into their name.