Total Rating: 
**3/4
Opened: 
February 27, 2001
Ended: 
April 15, 2001
Country: 
USA
State: 
Florida
City: 
Venice
Company/Producers: 
Coastal Theater Productions; Robert Ennis Turoff (producer)
Theater Type: 
Regional; Dinner Theater
Theater: 
Venice Golden Apple Dinner Theater
Theater Address: 
U.S. 41 Bypass at Holiday Inn Complex
Phone: 
(941) 484-7711
Running Time: 
2 hrs, 30 min
Genre: 
Farce
Author: 
Ray Cooney
Director: 
Garry Breul
Review: 

 McBean's Sam is, like many restaurant employees, an aspiring thespian. An Indiana boy, whose father would like him to be home for Christmas, he auditions every chance he can get. All he needs is one break. He has the talent, but it's often who you know that leads to the right audition and the right time with the absolutely right person. He is currently waiting for a call back on an important role.

While McBean plays Sam, he is also the 39 other characters that inhabit Sam's world. This is a tour de force of character acting: the chef, the front office personnel, and many other callers. McBean brilliantly goes from Sam to the other characters with the ease of an acrobat. At one point he banters one or two words at a time with a caller, never missing a beat. He often has two or three characters going at the same time.

Alas, I must quote from my previous reviews: "So there you have it. The perfect combination. A right-on script, deftly directed, and a brilliant actor. This is definitely four stars. Don't you dare miss this production." And I mean it even more now.

Cast: 
Brad Wages, Forrest Richards, Bob Moak, Stevan Diklich, Joleen Wilkinson, James Lewis, Robert Shuster
Technical: 
Sets/Lighting/Tech.Dir.: Daniel Yerman; Costumes: Roberta MacDonald; Stage Mgr: Garry Breul
Critic: 
Marie J. Kilker
Date Reviewed: 
March 2001