When Anna Lieberman was asked to co-direct “The Ladies Man,” with Kat Basso for the Kirk Players, she sat down to read the script — “and from the first moment, I was laughing out loud,” she said. “It’s hilarious. I am so happy to be co-directing it. We’ve been having a blast in rehearsal.”
Charles Moyer translated into English and adapted a French play, “Tailleur pour Dames,” written by Georges Feydeau. It debuted in 2007 and has been produced by more than 50 professional and amateur theaters, receiving the Reader’s Choice Award for best comedy by the 2010 Denver Post Ovation Awards.
“The Ladies Man” takes place around 1900 in Paris.
Dr. Hercule Molineaux, the main character, has a young wife and he tells a little lie, just a little lie, to cover an innocent, but embarrassing indiscretion.
What happens after that is what turns the play into a full-fledged farce, demonstrating “how telling one little lie can lead to dire consequences,” said Lieberman of Mundelein.
One lie begets another lie, and soon it’s difficult to tell the truth from falsehoods, she said.
Mundelein resident Dominick Basso, Kat’s husband, portrays Molineaux, who doesn’t necessarily play the straight man in the play, but he’s also not getting the humor of the situation, Lieberman said.
“The audience is laughing at him and at his situation,” she said.
“The play is very fast-paced, so the audience will have to keep up with everything that’s happening. The actors have to be moving fast. The timing has to be just right. They’re hard rehearsals. They’re not easy. They are demanding. But at the same time, it’s funny, and it gives the actors some comic relief.”
Lieberman said her co-director “is amazing to watch. I have learned a lot. She’s able to pull so much from the actors. It’s the little things. Maybe the way they read a line that’s not coming across the way it should be. Sometimes I can’t put that into words and it seems like Kat knows immediately how to do it.”
Lieberman has acted, co-directed and done behind-the-scenes work for the Kirk Players for 11 years.
“I have to say, we really think we have a good show coming,” she said. “We’re doing our best to make it great. For myself and everyone, it’s a great escape. Just come and have two hours of sheer enjoyment. You don’t have to think about anything. Just look at this crazy little family and their misadventures, and laugh and laugh and laugh.”
Sheryl DeVore is a freelance writer.
‘The Ladies Man’
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Where: Mundelein High School Auditorium, 1350 Hawley St., Mundelein
Tickets: $10-$20
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Information: 847-521-6192; www.kirkplayers.org