What happens when four high school girls make a solemn promise that they will serve as bridesmaids at each other’s wedding?
The audience finds out as Falls Patio Players presents “Always a Bridesmaid.” a Jones Hope Wooten (Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten) comedy.
As it turns out, these women will go through hell and high water to fulfill their group promise – no matter how many times they must rise to the occasion. While one woman found lasting happiness, the others walk down the aisle a number of times over the span of seven years. Four different nuptial scenarios occur here – one with only 24-hour notice, one with a request to wear old bridesmaids’ dresses, one with a French theme and finally, the wedding of the daughter/goddaughter of the women. The outfits worn/thrown together by these ladies serve as an integral part of the show.
The underlying purpose of this story is to showcase the enduring friendships of these four women and kudos to director Mary Beth Topf for highlighting this important bond.
However, this play features six talented actresses with a slightly mundane, rather predictable script from which to work. Karen Maio (Libby, the once-married woman and the mother of the young bride) has a great comedic presence and serves ably as the bridesmaid with the most common sense. Dottie Crain plays the oft-married Monette with a Golden Girls’ Blanche sensibility and is fun to watch; Jennifer Sciutti (Deedra) shrewdly approaches her character’s life situation with a take-charge attitude and Anna Marie Zorn shines as rough-around-the-edges Charlie, who initially has no intention of ever marrying. The interaction of these four women helps to get the audience over the not-really-funny parts.
The entire play takes place in a sitting room of a wedding venue in Laurelton Oaks, Virginia, owned by Sedalia Ellicott. (Angie Rodenkirch.) Sedalia’s purpose is to be sure that the weddings take place without any problems, but doesn’t seem to notice the sartorial mishaps going on all around her. It would be easy to turn Sedalia into a caricature, but Rodenkirch makes her very believable.
Rebecca Ruiz plays the young bride, Kari. Although she does appear with the others near the end of the play, the playwrights thought it a funny idea to feature her ongoing toast and drinking at her wedding reception (set between the long scene changes of the play) and to have her get drunker each time she appears. It adds absolutely nothing to the show, and I could not help but wonder why her devoted mother and godmothers did nothing to stop the bride from making a fool of herself – especially since they are once again serving as bridesmaids and Kari asks them to be sure she doesn’t have any champagne that day.
“Always a Bridesmaid” is a pleasant play, if not a true laugh-out-loud comedy. It runs through Feb. 13 at North Middle School Auditorium in Menomonee Falls.
