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Gamm’s ‘Twelfth Night’ Drenched in Lunacy

[CREDIT: Cat Laine] From left, Kelby Akin as Sir Toby Belch, Jeff Church as Sir Andrew Aguecheek, Jason Quinn as Fabian in Gamm's 'Twelfth Night'

[CREDIT: Cat Laine] From left, Kelby Akin as Sir Toby Belch, Jeff Church as Sir Andrew Aguecheek, Jason Quinn as Fabian in Gamm's 'Twelfth Night'
[CREDIT: Cat Laine] From left, Kelby Akin as Sir Toby Belch, Jeff Church as Sir Andrew Aguecheek, Jason Quinn as Fabian in Gamm’s ‘Twelfth Night’
[CREDIT: Cat Laine] Deb Martin as Malvolio, background L to R: Kelby Akin as Sir Toby Belch, Jason Quinn as Fabian in Gamm's 'Twelfth Night' running through April 14.
[CREDIT: Cat Laine] Deb Martin as Malvolio, background L to R: Kelby Akin as Sir Toby Belch, Jason Quinn as Fabian in Gamm’s ‘Twelfth Night’ running through April 14.
WARWICK, RI — Mismatched sets of lovers are the focus of “Twelfth Night,” a classic Shakespeare comedy given a delightfully madcap treatment by the Gamm Theatre.

The latest production opened in previews on March 21 and closes on April 14.

The story is about twins Viola (Alison Russo) and Sebastian (Michael Liebhauser), who are separated following a shipwreck. Not long after, Viola disguises herself as a man named Cesario and gets a job as a page for Duke Orsino (Cedric Lilly), who is in love with Olivia (an elegant Donnla Hughes). The only problem is Olivia finds herself falling in love with Cesario. Sebastian also gets caught up in the intrigue, a development I will not spoil.

Co-directors Rachel Walshe and Tony Estrella have crafted a sharp, fast-paced show with a bounty of outstanding performances.

Jeff Church (“It’s a Wonderful Life”) is a blast of off the wall eccentricity as Sir Andrew Aguecheek. Church excels at pure farce and flawlessly executes a series of pratfalls as Aguecheek displays no self-awareness of how foolish he appears.

Kelby Akin (“Romeo and Juliet”) amusingly portrays the perpetually drunken Toby Belch, Aguecheek’s partner in debauchery. 

Exhibiting a haughty demeanor as Malvolio, Deb Martin’s characterization is a dynamic fountain of pure comic madness.

Exhibiting a haughty demeanor as Malvolio, Deb Martin’s characterization is a dynamic fountain of pure comic madness. Malvolio, a steward in Olivia’s household, is feared by Belch and Aguecheek. One of the funniest scenes features Aguecheek taking refuge in a trunk. The two scoundrels play a nasty trick when they deceive Malvolio into believing Olivia has fallen for him. 

Russo (“A Doll’s House Part 2”) and Liebhauser are charming and convincingly vulnerable as Viola and Sebastian struggle with a bizarre chain of events.

Nora Eschenheimer (“Bad Jews”) proves a skilled musician as Feste, Olivia’s servant, a jester.

Patrick Lynch’s set design is unique, consisting of two giant crates which are opened up to reveal a pair of baroque drawing rooms. 

Special praise must also be reserved for David Howard’s glorious costume design and James Horban’s impressive lighting.

“Twelfth Night” follows in the tradition of Gamm’s previous Shakespeare productions such as “As You Like It” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.  This is a sumptuous-looking show drenched in lunacy and accented with a touch of sentimentality. The performers draw us in and show once again, love does conquer all.

Twelfth Night runs March 21-April 14 at The Gamm Theatre, 1245 Jefferson Blvd., Warwick, R.I. Tickets: $55-$65; Information about Friday night pay-what-you-wish tickets, as well as discounts for seniors, students, groups and more at gammtheatre.org/discounts. 

Joe Siegel
Author: Joe Siegel

Joe Siegel is a regular contributing writer for WarwickPost.com. His reporting has appeared in The Sun Chronicle in Attleboro and EDGE.

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