![\"Daniel](\"https:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Lakefront-DSC09739-copy-e1785286364358.jpeg\")
<\/a>Daniel Leslie and Mouchette van Helsdingen. Photo by Eric Keitel, as is the one above.<\/p><\/div>\n
For once, I’m going to tell you the premise of the play because, even though it\u2019s totally funny, it may not be for everyone. The play takes place over one weekend, in a cabin in Canada where a couple of seniors who barely know each other are planning to have sex. So I’m either attracting you or warning you, depending on whether or not you\u2019re a fan of hearing abut senior sex for a couple of hours.<\/p>\n
The sixty-eight-year-old woman, (played by pretty Mouchette van Helsdingen,) and the seventy-year-old man, (played by Daniel Leslie,) had met recently, and decide to go away for a couple of days to have sex to remind themselves that they can still be attractive. Or something like that. However, unless the seniors are Pierce Brosnan and Sharon Stone, this is not my<\/em> kind of topic. But I was already a fan of a few of Norm Foster’s other seventy-five plays, so I never even checked-out what it’s about before I went. All I knew was that it was sure to have a bunch of laughs, which it did.<\/p>\n As a matter of fact, I brought along my friend Marc, because I felt that he could really use a laugh right about now, (his precious dog had very recently passed away,) and he loved the show! He laughed the entire time; the evening at Theatre 40 was exactly what he needed.<\/p>\n I had seen Mouchette and Daniel in other plays before, and reviewed them favorably, and they\u2019re equally good in this one. But the best parts of the play are when Michael Gabiano, as the nutty, naive cabin-keeper of sorts, Duane, shows-up! The action picks-up every time he enters! After his first scene, the audience knows what\u2019s coming with each knock on the door.<\/p>\n Mouchette van Helsdingen, Michael Gabiano, and Daniel Leslie. Photo by Eric Keitel.<\/p><\/div>\n The only issue I have with the acting is that Daniel keeps trying, with little success, to do a Canadian accent-\u2013because the writer is from that country, and therefore the play takes place there\u2014but it\u2019s sooo distracting. The poor man tries so hard, but he\u2019s not really very close to it. It would be better if he would use it for just a bit, like when he says the word \u201csorry,\u201d which is quite often, but he\u2019s trying to do something weird on words such as \u201chave\u201d and \u201ccabin,\u201d and that\u2019s just confusing. Mr. X\u2019s family is from Canada, so I\u2019ve spent a lot of time there, including living in Mississauga, Calgary, and Edmonton, (love their humongous mall!,) for little bits, and Toronto for one whole summer while he was starring in the National Tour of They\u2019re Playing Our Song<\/em>, and I never heard anybody talk the way that this guy does. And, when only one character who lives in that same area has an accent that\u2019s supposed to be native to that area, it works even less.<\/p>\n But I enjoyed the experience overall. Lakefront<\/em> features yet another excellent set from Jeff G. Rack. Marc said to tell you that he got the setting of the play right away, just from seeing the set design!<\/p>\n The set, before the show, with the main lights off, yet still fabulous! Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n I always appreciate special little touches, and in the case of Lakefront<\/em>, it\u2019s that there is mainly Canadian music in-between the scenes. One time it was Gordon Lightfoot singing If You Could Read My Mind<\/em>, then there was Murray McLauchlan\u2019s Revelation<\/em>, and also a few instrumental chords of a Neil Young song.<\/p>\n The play did get a tad long, which is not the fault of this theatre\u2014I believe that they have to do it as written. I feel that it should end with a little scene about tea; that would be a charming conclusion.<\/p>\n And, as much as I\u2019m a fan of Foster\u2019s writing, in general, I don\u2019t get the title<\/em> of this one. Yes, it takes place in a supposed \u201clakefront\u201d cabin, but that\u2019s about it. There is one tiny bit in the script about that location, but nothing more. And that brief mention is definitely not significant to the narrative. It\u2019s absolutely no big deal\u2014I\u2019m just sayin\u2019.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s one little tip about your visit to Theatre 40 this summer: It\u2019s freezing in the theater, which is good if you are in need of air-conditioning in this heat. It would be less expensive for you to buy a ticket and spend time in there than to go to a mall for their<\/em> A\/C and wind-up buying a bunch of unnecessary junk! But I strongly suggest that everyone definitely bring some heavy clothing when you go. One little woman in the front row was not only wearing heavy pants, a shirt, and a sweater, but she brought one of those wintery puffy jackets, and put it on within five minutes! This will explain the temperature in there: I was so cold that I was envious of the actress\u2019 winter wardrobe! I kept wondering if I could be fast enough to run up on stage and grab her coat between scenes! So heed my warning to dress in layers.<\/p>\n Lakefront\u00a0<\/em>running through August 23, 2026<\/strong> LAKEFRONT Theatre 40 in Beverly Hills always brings us something interesting, and this time, it\u2019s the U.S. premiere of prolific Canadian playwright Norm Foster\u2019s three-character comedy, Lakefront. For once, I’m going to tell you the premise of the play because, even though it\u2019s totally funny, it may not be for everyone. The play takes place<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>
\n Theatre 40 \u00a0241 S. Moreno Drive, Beverly Hills<\/strong>
\n 310-364-0535\u00a0www.theatre40.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"