Play Review Seamus Swyers At 7:40 PM on October 19 people on the street begin to enter the historic brick building

on Church Street. The Keegan Theatre Company purchased this simple yet elegant building in July to be their permanent theatre after moving from theatre to theatre for years. Inside The audience members are greeted by an intimate theatre that gives one the impression that theyre seeing a play in their living room. The Keegans motto always in good company, rings true. The actors of The Sunshine Boys are so natural and they create such a homey environment that they could be company in you own home. The Sunshine boys, written by Neil Simon is a hysterical comedy that has the audience laughing from the scene until the last. The play, set in 1972 primarily takes place in a shabby New York apartment with disgusting wallpaper and a 10 dollar tube set television. Stage designer Dan Dieter transports us to the 1970s with a set that appears to consist of yard sale furniture, but is just what you would expect the apartment of an irritable old man to look like. The play tells the story of two formerly famous comedians, Al Lewis and Willie Clark, known for their vaudevillian duo routine Lewis and Clark. They havent spoken in eleven years after an ugly split. When CBS calls about a history of comedy special that they will be showing, the twosome is forced to reunite in order to perform one last time. The resentment between the two former comedians paired with an outstanding performance from Kevin Adams (Willie Clark) and Timothy H. Lynch (Al Lewis) makes for the perfect comedy. Although The Sunshine Boys is hilarious in its delivery, the themes it focuses on are actually somber. It is a play about aging and trying to hold on to dreams of the past. It causes the audience to reflect upon old age and seriously consider what the characters are going through. Louis and Clark are in there late seventies and the play focuses heavily on their aging. Lewis suffers from diabetes, poor blood circulation, and failing eyesight. The Deaths of people they once knew

surround them. Their wives have both passed away. Whenever Al Lewis opens the paper he reads about another person that he knew who has passed away, and although they lighten the topic with a hilarious bit where Lewis and Clark cant agree on who this person was, the sobering theme of aging is clearly conveyed. An old man living in a hotel room a fifth the size of his old suite, Willie Clark doesnt have much going for him. He tries desperately to hold on to the past and still considers himself an actor despite a lack of any substantial parts. He has his nephew Ben Silverman, played by Peter Finnegan, working as his agent, occasionally booking him work on commercials often which he botches by forgetting the lines. Willie harbors enmity towards Lewis because he retired leaving Willie without a partner. Willie wasnt ready to give up acting and still isnt. His desire to remain and actor eleven years later helps convey the theme of holding on to past dreams. We see these themes illustrated in several further instances throughout the play. The climax itself demonstrates the theme of aging when Willie has a heart attack during an argument with Lewis at CBS. Still, even when dealing with grave themes The Sunshine Boys will have you laughing until your ribs hurt. The play was beautifully constructed. Every person involved in the production performed their job skillfully. Lighting designer Colin Dieck uses brilliant spotlights to create the world of Show business and CBS. Convincing 70s costumes and hairdos designed by Carol Baker (set dresser) and Craig miller (hair and makeup) make the audience believe that were in 1972. Miller and Baker did an excellent job of accentuating the old age of Lewis and Clark. From the liver spots and dirt on their faces to Willies ragged hair and tattered pajamas, everything about them causes us to wonder when theyre going to drop dead. It also didnt hurt when they dressed actor Maria Rizzo up as a stereotypical blonde, and scantily Clad Nurse. The actors involved in the play as well as the Choreography were superb and felt natural. Little things like the constant pacing of the nerve wracked nephew and the strained footsteps of the elderly Al

Louis make these characters feel real. They perform so well that although the dialogue is often strained and filled with unrealistic amounts of humor the characters feel completely natural at all times. Director Michael Innocenti produces an uproarious and at the same time touching play with his interpretation of Neil Simons The Sunshine Boys. The play is directed wonderfully. Innocenti chooses to give this play a more sentimental feeling. He creates a story with a solemn underlying theme of aging and trying to retain a grip on the past and delivers it with a huge heaping of laughter.