Cream City’s ‘Chapter two’ breathes life into grief

By MARILYN JOZWIK

Published March 16, 2020

With the coronavirus uppermost in many persons’ minds, it seems like a good time for a good laugh. And few playwrights are better at delivering laughs than Neil Simon.

In “Chapter Two,” presented by Cream City Theater, Simon displays his trademark wit as four characters navigate relationships.

Director Katherine Beeson has assembled an outstanding quartet of performers who effortlessly and successfully deliver Simon’s clever repartee. The first act breezes with a dizzying display of one-liners that practically fall over each other.

Lots of comedy comes from brothers George and Leo (Scott Fudali and Nicholas Callan Haubner), after the death of George’s wife of 12 years. George has just returned from a trip to Europe – revisiting places of his honeymoon. Leo has tried to get George back on the dating track, but George is in no mood.

One day George accidentally calls the number of a woman Leo has suggested he date, a divorced actress   named Jennie (Joanna Langworthy). It seems Jennie’s best friend Faye (Rachel Verhoef) also knows George and had been hoping the two would hook up. To get brother and friend off their backs, George and Jennie agree to meet. Not only do they hit it off, but they fall head over heels for each other and decide to get married at the courthouse after just a few weeks.

Faye and Leo both become concerned that the two have moved
too fast, but George and Jennie are blinded by love.

In Act 2, the wheels fall off for George and Jennie – as well as for Faye and Leo’s affair -- and the dialogue turns from loose and funny to taut and emotional. Simon does all that well and this small cast handles it with ease.

Fudali as the widowed George is nothing short of amazing. His delivery is pitch-perfect, showcasing Simon’s many laugh lines with natural ease, not overplaying or pausing for effect. He puts on George’s wit like a well-worn sweater. His description of one date Leo set him up with is hilarious, calling her dress “electric” and adding, “I didn’t know where to plug it in.”

Langworthy is a good match for Fudali. She, too, is tasked with delivering Simon’s rapid-fire wit. The scenes between her and Fudali are wonderfully done. I especially enjoyed their initial phone calls and watching Langworthy’s expression gradually turn from annoyed to intrigued. The two capture the joy and brightness of a budding romance so beautifully.

Act 2 brings on a whole new round of dynamics. George’s tamped down sadness rises to the surface as he says, “I’m trying to hold on to self-pity.” Jennie’s expectations begin to unravel in a powerful scene that drips with passion.

Haubner is slick and smarmy as Leo, a press agent with access to lots of beautiful movie stars and a failing marriage. Yet, Haubner’s Leo conveys a heartfelt concern for his brother.  Verhoef’s Faye is wide-eyed and often bemused, with delightful bouts of poutiness. While Faye is not quite a ditzy blonde, she is easily unhinged.

The play is nicely staged, with George’s dull apartment on one side of the stage and Jennie’s bright apartment on the other. Fudali handled set design and construction, as well as light and sound design, all well done. Details, like well-synced phone calls, enhance the finely tuned show.

“Chapter Two” is based on Simon’s own marriage to actress Marsha Mason, who had to deal with Simon’s grief after the death of his first wife. With this
background, Simon is able to inject some very personal and raw feelings into
the characterizations of George and Jennie that Fudali and Langworthy execute
so well.

If you go:

Who: Cream City Theater

What: “Chapter Two”

When: 7:30 p.m. March 20 and 21, 2 p.m. March 22

Where: Inspiration Studios, 1500 S. 73rd St.,
West Allis

Info/tickets: CreamCityTheater.com