The Mystery of Irma Vep
At
The Court Theatre
(Court Theatre Website)
5535 S. Ellis Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60637
773.753.4472

November 12 to December 13, 2009

Written by
Charles Ludlam
(Charles Ludlam Bio)

Starring
Erik Hellman:
Jane Twisden, Lord Edgar Hillcrest
Chris Sullivan:
Nicodemus Underwood, Lady Enid Hillcrest,
Alcazar, Mummy


Artistic Director: Charles Newell
Director: Sean Graney
Scenic Design: Jack Magaw
Lighting Design: Heather Gilbert
Costume Design: Alison Siple
Sound Design: Michael Griggs
Production Stage Manager: Ellen Hay
Stage Manager: Sara Gammage
Public Relations: Cathy Taylor

Susan Weinrebe
November 21, 2009

Just in case anagrams aren’t your forte, the secret behind the title of the hilarious spoof The Mystery of Irma Vep is that the rearranged letters spell “vampire.” Big gasp!

Only two actors take all the roles in the play. The set design looks as if a drawing by Edward Gorey had mated with one by Aubrey Beardsley. French doors open onto a dark and stormy night. A portrait of the lord’s glowering dead wife hangs over the mantel. It’s clear that campy high jinks are about to ensue.

The Mystery of Irma Vep hilariously sends up the Gothic romance genre hitting every cliché along the way. Isolated mysterious mansion? Check. Dead wife and innocent new bride? Check. Hostile maid and threatening grounds man? Check. Storms, secrets in the bookcase, suspicion thick enough to make a teaspoon stand on end? Check, check, check!

The play is a farce taken to the nth degree by the requirement that two, presumably male actors, take all the parts. In the current version at the Court Theatre, the visual joke of the actors in or out of drag is multiplied by their relative sizes. Erik Hellman makes for a rather masculine and five-o’clock-shadowed snarky maid, Jane Twisden, while as Lord Edgar Hillcrest, he is delicate and feminine. Hellman’s slight physique plays against the relatively hulking size of Chris Sullivan, who as Lady Enid is reminiscent of the ballet dancing elephants in Fantasia. When he plays the part of Alcazar, the hulking Egyptian guide with eyebrows and mustache as furry as rainforest caterpillars, leading Lord Edgar, the tiny oblivious Brit, hither and yon through the audience, he becomes a living cartoon.

This was one play I didn’t want to end. The brilliant author made references to movies, poems, books, plays, and more, challenging fun to catch. Vampires and werewolves, chases with cleavers, and bleeding portraits thrown in for good measure thrilled and shocked the audience. Through the many doors, enough entrances and exits with quick changes of costume and character demonstrated a marvel of back stage support. And, most of all, the deliciously naughty ensemble (if two may be that) of Hellman and Sullivan made every moment of The Mystery of Irma Vep unforgettable fun.

Chris Sullivan and Erik Hellman
in "Charles Ludlam’s The Mystery of Irma Vep"
Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

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Erik Hellman and Chris Sullivan
in "Charles Ludlam’s The Mystery of Irma Vep"
Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

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Erik Hellman and Chris Sullivan
in "Charles Ludlam’s The Mystery of Irma Vep"
Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

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Chris Sullivan and Erik Hellman
in "Charles Ludlam’s The Mystery of Irma Vep"
Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

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Chris Sullivan and Erik Hellman
in "Charles Ludlam’s The
Mystery of Irma Vep"
Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

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For more information, contact Dr. Roberta E. Zlokower at zlokower@bestweb.net