Last night we saw The Sunshine Boys at the Guthrie, directed by St. Olaf's Gary Gisseleman. It was spectacular! The house was pretty full for a Wednesday night and the laughter was huge and frequent.
Neil Simon's portrayal of these two old vaudevillians in a story about their relationship makes excellent use of the vaudeville conventions. Their story includes a steady stream of gentle misunderstanding mixed in with bits from their old routine so that the audience experiences a particular comic perspective on life. In this well acted production, it was the perfect entertainment in the midst of a hot summer.
As the actors took their bows, there was also a tender moment as the two mature actors who play the entertainers interacted with the young actor who plays the nephew/agent. Here we glimpsed a doubling in which the relationships portrayed seemed to mirror the relationships among the players.
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