They say it takes a village to raise a child. The Dusty Flowerpot Cabaret program for The Scarlet Queen of Mercy takes three 8 x 11.5 pages — a small village — to list the cast, crew, production, marketing, creative, art department, music and musicians (11, under the direction of Jack Garton). If The Scarlet Queen of Mercy sounds like a musical extravaganza, it is. But there can be too much of a good thing, too. It all gets pretty chaotic.
The Russian Hall is a great old wooden barn of a building on Campbell Avenue in the heart of Strathcona. The building began as the Yugoslavian Centre but was taken over in 1947 by the Federation of Russian Canadians of B.C. as a cultural centre. In an area of funky, skinny old homes of a bygone era (many lovingly restored) and old country gardens (nodding with bluebells and sweet-smelling lily-of-the-valley), it’s well worth a stroll through the neighbourhood before going to the show.
Dusty Flowerpot Cabaret has transformed the main floor of the hall into various performance areas and, since the show is about a 1955 Hollywood filming of a movie called The Scarlet Queen of Mercy, these sites include a makeup room, the dressing room and the film set. Old camera and lighting equipment are constantly being wheeled around; the makeup girl is perpetually touching up the actors; people are rushing around with clipboards; and the producer is worriedly trailing the director — who is constantly saying, “I’m having a thought,” thereby changing the script and adding to the mounting cost.
The audience is seated at small cabaret-style tables or in rows behind the tables. The “production assistant” gives instructions for us to stand up and rotate our chairs when the action moves off the stage — set up as the cabaret where Ava Carlo as Ruby (Karly Warkentin) performs — and into one of the corners.
If the action moves all over the place, so does the story written, directed and choreographed by Kat Single-Dain.
But it all starts off with a bang: a shimmery chorus line with high-stepping hoofers singing and dancing “A Little Ice Cream in My Cone,” written by Patrick Kearns. It’s cheesy — as it’s meant to be — and a little bit naughty with one of the chorus girls asking for more balls in her cone.
Ruby, divorced from cabaret owner Gus (Fergal McSwiggan), still has a hankering for him but falls for Prince Nicolay (Nathan Barrett) from the fictitious Bolonia. English not being the Prince’s first language, he frequently gets things wrong: “My erection is in your hands” instead of “my protection is in your hands.”
There comes a point when separating the offstage action from the filmmaking becomes an exercise in futility.
But the music, written variously by Patrick Kearns, Karly Warkentin, Jack Garton and Martin Reisle, is outstanding. An absolute star is Garton, as the film’s director Arthur Goudy. Best known for his work as a singer, songwriter, accordionist and trumpet player with the band Maria in the Shower, Garton is a Tom Waits-style singer who really rocks. I say, let this guy loose for way more than a couple of dynamite solos.
Also excellent is Candice Roberts as Stella, constantly trying to enlarge her movie role with goofy ideas.
Two endings: one somber, one ecstatic with a colourful, rowdy “Bolonian” wedding and much music, folk dancing and the enthusiastic shouting the Bolonian equivalent, I assume, of “L’Chaim” — To Life.
You could take your kids (although there are some sock ‘im, knee ‘im in the groin dust-ups and it’s also two-and-a-half hours long). On opening night, one couple took their little dog. Now that’s real community theatre for you.
For more reviews, go to joledingham.ca.
The Scarlet Queen of Mercy runs until May 24 at the Russian Hall. Tickets and details at dustyflowerpotcabaret.com.
