And you know what? I enjoyed it much more\u00a0this<\/em>\u00a0time. (I might have been too immature to fully appreciate it nine years ago. I mean it!)<\/p>\n The stunning view of the city from the Mansion. Photo by Karen Salkin, as is the one of the staircase that’s at the top of this review.<\/p><\/div>\n The Manor<\/em>\u00a0is a\u00a0follow-the-actors-around play, with the most fascinating\u00a0twist. Not only is it presented in a majorly significant location\u00a0in general<\/em>, Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills, but this is the actual home where the real-life tale that this production is based on took place! That\u2019s dramatic. And\u00a0getting to\u00a0see the interior of this historic edifice is half the fun of the entire experience.<\/p>\n The Manor<\/em>\u00a0is a semi-fictionalized work that’s\u00a0taken from the lives of the early-ish 1900s Los Angeles Doheny family, whose patriarch was a main player in the Teapot Dome Scandal. I had to research the topic because I must have been absent that day, (as I was just about\u00a0every<\/em>\u00a0day of History class!) I heartily suggest that\u00a0you<\/em>,\u00a0also, research the Dohenys for yourselves, but you should wait until\u00a0after<\/em>\u00a0you see the show, to discover how it relates to, and differs from, the true story. It\u2019s infinitely\u00a0interesting.<\/p>\n (L-R) Carol Potter, Katyana Rocker-Cook, Darby Hinton, Daniel Leslie, and John Combs. Photo by Casey Durkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Other interactive shows often let you wander around willy-nilly, but for\u00a0this<\/em>\u00a0one, we’re led. This is how it works here: The play begins in what I\u2019m assuming is the drawing room of the Mansion, and then the audience is split into three groups divided by where everyone sits to start off the proceedings. (So make sure to keep your duo or group together when you take your first seats.) After that first scene, each group follows either the butler or one of two housekeepers to the next location, and it goes like that after each scene. It\u2019s all very organized. (And no worries for you stairs-eschewers, as\u00a0I<\/em>\u00a0am\u2014all the scenes take place in different areas of the\u00a0first<\/em>\u00a0floor. The historic grand staircase is used only to enter and exit the building, and at intermission; it\u2019s actually a great privilege, so I suggest you take the time to appreciate the climb or descent.)<\/p>\n Every group gets to see every scene, of course, just in different orders, until the ends of both acts, when the assemblage comes together once again.<\/p>\n The beginning and ending Drawing Room set. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Adding to the coolness of the plot and location of The Manor is\u00a0seeing the actors perform just a few feet from your face. What concentration they must have to not be distracted by anything in the close-up audience, (including a phone ringing in our group!)\u00a0\u00a0What amazes me even more is that the actors have to do each scene\u00a0three times<\/em>\u00a0in a row in the same performance! Oysh. I<\/em>\u00a0couldn\u2019t repeat\u00a0my<\/em>\u00a0tales even\u00a0twice<\/em>\u00a0in the two-decade run of my TV show! I thought Broadway\u00a0<\/em>was hard, with having to say the same lines for eight shows a\u00a0week<\/em>! It boggles my mind that these<\/em> people are able to do the nightly-triple-scenes here.<\/p>\n As far as this cast goes, I enjoyed recognizing some of their faces from productions at Theater 40, the Artistic Director of which, David Hunt Stafford, is producing, (and playing the butler in,)\u00a0The Manor<\/em>. I\u2019ve also seen a\u00a0few of them in\u00a0this<\/em>\u00a0show before. Daniel Leslie, who plays the Senator, has been doing so since the very beginning. He has such a good deep voice that I kept expecting him to break out into\u00a0Ol\u2019 Man River<\/em>\u00a0at any second!<\/p>\n The women, all new to me, really impressed me this time. Not that it\u2019s a contest, but Carol Potter, as the patriarch\u2019s wife, was the most real for me. I was actually in pain for her character. And there was something about Amy Tolsky, as the Senator\u2019s wife, that put me at ease, especially seeing her act so up-close. I felt like I was just watching her talk with someone in my house. Lastly of them, Nathalie Rudolph, playing the bride who\u2019s joining the family, is a brave girl because, in one scene, she’s half-naked in lingerie! It’s for only a few minutes, but she’s so close to the strangers in the audience. She didn\u2019t even flinch on opening night!\u00a0 (So, ladies, you may not want to let your significant others sit in the front row in the first bedroom scene!)<\/p>\n L-R) Amy Tolsky, Nathalie Rudolph, and Carol Potter. Photo by Casey Durkin.<\/p><\/div>\n And I cannot tell you how impressed I am with the very minimal lighting. The production uses solely<\/em> the Mansion\u2019s available house lights, but it\u2019s all perfect. For example, the bedroom is lit with just five lamps, two on the wall and three on the floor. And the rest of the rooms follow suit. It adds so much to the 1920s ambiance, while still illuminating the action enough for the observers.<\/p>\n As entertaining as it all is, there\u00a0are<\/em>\u00a0a few issues that need improvement. The first is that Peter Mastne, who plays\u00a0the wealthy family scion, and new husband, talks waaaaay too low. Several people were remarking about it at intermission on opening night. At one point near the end of the show, I heard myself say, \u201cWhat?!,\u201d by accident, but\u00a0I<\/em>\u00a0was talking as low as\u00a0he<\/em>\u00a0was, (and was wearing a mask,) so nobody heard me, either, (thank goodness.) I needed subtitles for his lines! He must think he’s performing on TV or film, not stage.<\/p>\n The second issue is that my friend and I couldn\u2019t figure-out exactly what accent Kristin Towers-Rowles, as the wife of the handyman-turned-friend-of-the-fam, is doing\u2014it keeps changing. We both thought that in Act I, it’s mentioned she’s from New York, but then London in Act II. They should just not even name her place of origin, and let her speak normally. The character\u2019s city of birth is not the least bit important to the narrative. Plus, she and Eric Keitel, the actor who plays her husband, seem to be doing two different shows, with Kristen overdoing her part quite a bit. But she can<\/em> sing. (No, this is\u00a0not<\/em>\u00a0a musical\u2014Kristen does just one brief ditty in Act II.)<\/p>\n Peter Mastne and Eric Keitel on the iconic Greystone Mansion staircase. Photo by Casey Durkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Thirdly, it should be made clear from the start of the second act that it\u2019s now ten years later<\/em>. One of the group leaders finally mentions it, but after a major new wrinkle in the story has already taken place. So that’s a tad confusing. The basically one-page program for the show is not exactly a fount of information; it just lists the cast, without time, place, cast bios, or any other pertinent info, such as that the second act takes place ten years later than the first! (But now you<\/em> all know! So please spread the word to your fellow audience members when you see the show.)<\/p>\n And lastly in the complaint department is this: The character of one of the housekeepers who lead the groups around is mute. My friend thought that either the actress is so in real life, (but I\u2019m pretty sure that I\u2019ve seen her act elsewhere before, so that can\u2019t be the case,) or she can\u2019t remember lines, or was cast just that day. When I first saw this play years ago, I posited that perhaps the playwright just didn\u2019t want to come-up with any lines for the character. No matter the rationale, it\u2019s annoying. Just have her say, \u201cCome with me, please,\u201d or \u201cWalk this way,\u201d or even, \u201cGet up, people!!!\u201d Her muteness has absolutely nothing to do with the story, so that situation takes up too much brain space for the many audience members who spend their time thinking that condition is going to likely be the key to what happens in the script.<\/p>\n (L-R) Katyana Rocker-Cook, David Hunt Stafford, and Gail Johnston, (the housekeeper who’s supposed to be mute for some unknown reason that’s irrelevant to the story.) Photo by Casey Durkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Now back to the positives. I was thrilled to discover that this<\/em> time, chairs are provided for\u00a0everyone<\/em>\u00a0in all the areas. I\u2019m pretty sure that some people had to stand nine years ago, which was not comfortable for many of us.<\/p>\n The whole event starts off with the stage manager, Craig Hissong, apprising the assemblage of some production notes. On opening night, he entertained us all with his amusing detailed spiel. But he forgot to tell everyone to shut their phones! (Hopefully he\u2019ll do that from here on out when he reads this. And if he<\/em> doesn’t, I<\/em> am, right now!)<\/p>\n And here are my suggestions for you to have the optimum experience at\u00a0The Manor<\/em>. For one of the second act scenes on the iconic staircase, (the one near the end of the show,) I suggest taking a seat at the bottom<\/em> of it, rather than following the crowd up to the second floor overhang. My friend wrongly assumed that they were going to see more rooms up there, (even though I told her they were\u00a0not<\/em>,) so she started up the stairs, and then realized that I knew what I was talking about, (as always,) so she ran right back down to take a seat next to me, facing the action. I think it would be weird to have a bird\u2019s eye view of that penultimate scene, but, if that’s your thing, go for it.<\/p>\n And I cannot stress this one enough\u2014dress warmly! Keep in mind that Greystone Mansion is an incredibly old, drafty edifice, and it doesn\u2019t appear to have any heat. I\u2019m hot more often than not, but, despite rocking four layers and big old heavy (and, of course, fashionable,) boots, I was pretty chilly most of the time. And dress\u00a0comfortably<\/em>, as well, especially footwear. But at the same time, keep in mind that you have to carry all your possessions with you from area to area\u2014including jackets, scarves, and big bags\u2014so be prepared for that.<\/p>\n The beautiful Greystone Mansion Courtyard. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n And here\u2019s some fair warning for your stomach\u2014you cannot eat inside the mansion, so don\u2019t even think of bringing snacks with you. But no worries\u2014there are complimentary beverages and packaged treats, (such as chips and cookies,) at intermission out in the courtyard, (which is where I met the incredible Usain Bolt in 2011, so Greystone always has a place in my heart.)<\/p>\n And, to round out the\u00a0specialness, the parking is free, as well.<\/p>\n The Manor<\/em>\u00a0running though February 3, 2024<\/strong> THE MANOR I had seen this\u00a0special\u00a0theatre presentation almost a decade ago, and decided to give\u00a0The Manor\u00a0another whirl last week, just in case it turns-out to be the final year of its (so far) nineteen season run, (although LA audiences hope it\u2019s not.) It\u2019s also the first\u00a0time the show is being produced\u00a0since the pandemic, so we\u2019re<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/IMG_3083-e1706039494124.jpg\")
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\n Greystone Mansion 905 Loma Vista Drive, Beverly Hills<\/strong>
\n 310-364-3606\u00a0www.theatre40.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"