by Charles Busch Dobama Theatre, 2003 |
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The photographs on this webpage were taken by Tim Hnat
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 Greg Violand as “Ira,” Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” and Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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Chagrin Valley Times “Best of 2003,” Herb Hammer
“…there were some bright spots that appeared here and there. Theatre that gave us hope. Let’s start with the best. For all-around great comedy performances and directing, The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife at Dobama Theatre was the year’s great high … a great ensemble piece” |
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 Laura Perrotta as “Lee,” Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” and Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” |
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 Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” and Rajiv Punja as “Mohammed” |
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| Excerpts from the Cleveland Plain Dealer review “very funny” Director Fred Sternfeld has a “sure hand” “as full of laughs as Zabar’s is full of lox” “the members of the supporting cast all give strong performances” “droll and facile social satire” |
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 Jeanne Task as “Marjorie,” Greg Violand as “Ira” and Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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 Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” and Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” |
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Cast of Characters |
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Mohammed
Marjorie Taub Ira Taub Frieda Lee Green |
Rajiv Punja
Jeanne Task Greg Violand* Myrtle Silverman Laura Perrotta* |
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* member – Actors’ Equity Association
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 Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” and Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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Excerpts from the Sun Press review
“Allergist’s Wife takes audience on hysterical ride”
“Laura Perrotta … palpable charisma and a dark seductiveness” “Myrtle Silverman delivers a delightful performance … some of the play’s funniest moments” “a quick-paced laugh fest” “what this play does provide is the curative power of uproarious laughter” Jarrod Zickefoose, The Sun Press, 2003 |
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 Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” and Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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 Greg Violand as “Ira,” Laura Perrotta as “Lee” and Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” |
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| Excerpts from the Times Newspapers review “The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife is a fun evening of theatre” “Dobama’s production has a lot going for it” “Jeanne Task swings the pendulum of emotions with ease. One minute she is depressed, the next manic. Greg Violand plays the serious pawn with purpose. Laura Perrotta is outstanding as the friend who is both hard to believe and impossible to ignore. Myrtle Silverman has the right presence for the self-put upon mother. Rajiv Punja is fine as the doorman” Roy Berko, Times Newspapers, 2003 |
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 Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” and Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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 Greg Violand as “Ira” and Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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| Excerpts from the Chagrin Valley Times review
“comic mayhem”
“Charles Busch’s hilarious comedy comes at you with all of its sophisticated guns blazing” “Laughs pile upon laughs and by the end of Act I you are gasping for breath” “There is no Broadway cast, of course, no Linda Lavin who received nothing but raves in the title role, but worry not. Dobama has Jeanne Task as Marjorie, the mid-life crisis queen of the Upper West Side. In a part that appears written for her fierce and frantic crashing comic style, Miss Task raises the ceiling of the old theater and has turned the Charles Busch laugh-getter into a laugh riot” “Greg Violand gives the right underplay to the part of the doctor and Myrtle Silverman, an old hand at playing the comic New York mother, has done it again. This time she’s better than ever” “Laura Perrotta as the magnificent Lee sweeps the play off its feet” “pure comedy” Herb Hammer, Chagrin Valley Times, 2003 |
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 Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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 Jeanne Task as “Marjorie,” Greg Violand as “Ira” and Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” |
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Production Staff |
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Producer
Director Set Designer Costume Designer Sound Designer Light Designer Stage Manager Properties |
Joyce Casey Fred Sternfeld Jeff Herrmann Dana Romeo Richard B. Ingraham Marcus Dana Amanda Harland Mary Walsh |
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Times Tribute Award of Achievement 2003
Jeff Herrmann – Set Design |
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 Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda,” Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” and Greg Violand as “Ira” |
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| Excerpts from the Cleveland Scene review “effervescent” “fun characterizations” “Perotta … a performance as well balanced and dyamic as a spinning top” “Myrtle Silverman … wickedly hilarious” “Greg Violand is dead-on as the phlegm-obsessed allergist, his erotic inner turmoil given expert comic play when faced with the possibility of a menage a trois with his wife and Lee, who wants to slather them in scented oils. ‘ We’re both allergic to floral scents,’ he deadpans, before giving over to temptation in one of the play’s most expertly staged and well-executed scenes” “Rajiv Punja … a strong presence … understatedly stellar” “it’s as funny as one of your better sitcoms” Marie Andrusewicz, Cleveland Scene, 2003 |
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 Greg Violand as “Ira,” Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” and Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” |
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 Laura Perrotta as “Lee,” Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” and Jeanne Task as “Marjorie“ |
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| Excerpts from the Cleveland Jewish News review
“If it’s laughs you’re looking for, you’ll find them in abundance”
“The brazen, situational farce about what it means to be New York middle-class and middle-aged Jewish resonates loudly in this Ohio premiere ably directed by Fred Sternfeld and a hardworking ensemble that gets it right most of the time. But between the laugh lines is a more sobering message about a woman’s search for identity” “Set designer Jeff Herrmann’s recreation of a contemporary upscale New York pad is heavenly” “achingly funny” “Jeanne Task makes her own imprint as the depressed and mercurial woman yearning for personal fulfillment. Fluctuating between rage, tearful outbursts and ennui, Task registers the psychic pain of the frustrated wife and much put-upon daughter … a seasoned comic actress” “Myrtle Silverman … formidable and witheringly funny, an irrepressible punch without uttering a word” “Greg Violand … as the self-centered husband, Ira; and Laura Perrotta as the unexpected visitor, Lee … are terrific actors who raise the thermostat on everyone’s performance whenever they appear” “Lee is equal parts con artist, golem, and seductress. As played by Perrotta, all are perfectly drawn” “Dana Romeo’s smart costumes enhance Perrotta’s transcendent beauty” “Rajiv Punja is a natural as Mohammed” “lighthearted comedy” “If you like your humor wholesale, you will love ‘ The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife’ “ Fran Heller, The Cleveland Jewish News, 2003 |
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 Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” and Laura Perrotta as “Lee” |
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 Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda,” Jeanne Task as “Marjorie” and Rajiv Punja as “Mohammed” |
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 Jeanne Task as “Marjorie,” Greg Violand as “Ira,” Laura Perrotta as “Lee” and Myrtle Silverman as “Frieda” |
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Furniture courtesy of Kitay’s Furniture & Design
5055 Richmond Road Bedford Heights, OH 44146 216-220-5014 phone 216-595-9885 fax |
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