Theatre Collingwood is trying its hand at opera, sort of.
The theatre company's next production is called Lend Me a Tenor, a farce written by Ken Ludwig.
The performance is a behind-the scenes look at the Cleveland Grand Opera Company in the 1930s.
The company imports a world-famous, womanizing, Italian opera singer to perform in their gala season opener but discover their special attraction has passed out cold in his hotel room.
The show is directed by Steven Thomas, artistic director of Theatre Collingwood.
"You don't have to know anything about opera to enjoy this comedy because life is full of wannabes. Have you ever heard people grumbling around the water cooler or on the sports playing field that they can do better?" he said.
"What makes this comedy exceptional is that the playwright has created some interesting challenges contrasting the farcical side of theatre with the sheer grandeur of music. The music is mostly only used in scene transitions to mark changes of setting, but serves as a powerful punctuation to the crazy shenanigans of the action. It's a brilliant piece of classic comedy, which is universally appealing on so many levels. That's what makes great theatre."
Ostap Soroka stars as Tito, the opera star.
"What he wants is a simple happy life. He doesn't get it," he said. "This show is really well written. It's not fluff. It's got a lot of good drama."
Viviana Zarrillo plays Tito's wife, Maria. She said sometimes the character can be cliché, but says she makes for great comedy.
"It's a tribute to my mother," she said.
Graham Coffeng stars as Max, the assistant, who dreams of taking the stage as an opera star.
"He doesn't quite have what it takes he aspires to be."
Tito is pursued by three women who idolize him: Candy Pryce as the straight-laced Julia, chair of the opera guild, Catherine Braund as Maggie, an ingénue-groupie and Nicole Leroux as Diana, the prima donna who hopes seducing the tenor may be her ticket to the Metropolitan Opera. Jay Wilson plays the enthusiastic opera fanatic bellhop, Frank.
The show takes place at the Gayety Theatre from Aug. 13-16 and Aug. 19-23 at 8 p.m., with a matinee on Aug. 14.
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