The first thing director Carl Moore wants people to understand before they see “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” is that it’s very silly. “That’s part of (the show’s) strengths,” Moore said. “It knows that it’s very silly, and it owns it.”
The comedy which was inspired by the farces of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus (who lived from 254-184 BC) has been making audiences laugh at Midland Community Theatre for the past month and will approach its final weekend with its last two shows at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Moore has directed shows at MCT for more than 20 years now and participated in this play twice, once in the ‘80s and the other in the ‘90s. This is his first time directing the show.
“At Midland Community Theatre, our executive director (Tim Jebsen) was finding people to direct, and he’s been asking me for quite awhile, but the thing is I’ll direct whatever show he wants me to direct,” Moore said. “He told me the reason that he wanted me for this particular show is that I have played the lead role in the show twice in the past. He just thought that I’d be perfect for it. Quite frankly, I enjoy doing it.”
The show opened Sept. 9 at the Mabee Theatre II.
“The show’s success is due primarily to the fact that the people in the show auditioned,” Moore said. “Once we got the cast, it was like, ‘OK, all I need to do is just make sure they don’t get out of hand and just go.’ They’re all doing such a wonderful job. Plus, I have an amazing choreographer that did all the dances for the show. I really have been blessed.”
The plot of the show is that Pseudolus schemes to win the heart of a virgin, Phelia, for his young master, Hero. In exchange, Hero will grant Pseudolus his freedom once and for all. However, things are never as easy as they seem. Chaos ensues with the hair-brained schemes, cases of mistaken identity, slamming doors and convoluted plot twists.
“If you’re anyone who enjoys story telling or listens to a lot of stories, you know immediately that they’re going to get what they want because it’s comedy,” Moore said. “The real thing is what they go through to get there.”
Moore said he has enjoyed directing this show.
“It’s been great fun,” Moore said. “I’ve really enjoyed the whole process. I would anticipate that I needed to do a particular thing with the show and lo and behold, the actors were guided by the same thing that guided me, and they were doing it before I got to them about it, so it’s been great. It’s been great fun.”
Moore says reactions from the audiences have been positive.
“They really enjoy it, and that’s been fun for the actors and it’s been fun for me,” Moore said. “Of course, we’re in a small theater. It seats about 154. I don’t go in and watch the shows every day. In this particular theater, I’d be taking a seat away from somebody. I have a cast that I can thoroughly trust and won’t go crazy with it. It’s going to be a great show. The audiences are really enjoying it and having a great time with it.”
If you go
- What: “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.”
- Where: Midland Community Theatre (Mabee Theatre II).
- When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
- Tickets: tinyurl.com/45cjne4k
