All about Gracie Allen as seen through Burns' eyes
It always seemed to me that Gracie Allen was the engine behind the Burns and Allen machine. In Act II Playhouse's production of Say Goodnight, Gracie, it quickly becomes apparent that George Burns felt the same way.
It always seemed to me that Gracie Allen was the engine behind the Burns and Allen machine. In Act II Playhouse's production of
Say Goodnight, Gracie
, it quickly becomes apparent that George Burns felt the same way.
Tony Braithwaite, in a solo performance as Burns, quips, "One day, the audience realized I had a terrific talent. They were right. I did have a terrific talent, and I was married to her for 38 years." The couple worked the vaudeville circuit together, made the transition to radio ("We had the right kind of act; we talked to each other"), then to short movies, and finally to television, where audiences adored their straight-man/dizzy-dame act.
When Allen retired, Burns' show limped along for a year until it was canceled. After Allen's death, his career took a nose-dive, which continued until the 1970s, when he was cast in The Sunshine Boys, won an Oscar at 80, and began a whole new career as a movie star. Playwright Rupert Holmes - trivia buffs might know him better as the singer/songwriter of that '70s soft-rock staple "Escape (The Pina Colada Song)" - has an entire century's worth of fascinating material to draw upon.
This material has found a strong conduit in the sympathetic Braithwaite, who practically beams with affection for his character's love and life. But while Braithwaite may have gotten inside Burns' head, he's not entirely comfortable in the man's skin. He's just a shade too rumpled, a couple of degrees less commanding than the kind of guy who could make it out of a Lower East Side tenement, one of a dozen siblings, and go on to survive four separate entertainment mediums, career intact.
Kevin Glaccum's directorial approach seems to be focused on keeping Braithwaite busy while he unravels his spiel - changing jackets, opening and closing storage trunks - rather than allowing the stories to lead the action. It doesn't help that Bill Pollock's set is cluttered, with awkward angles and redundant still photos surrounding a screen onto which movies and more stills from Burns' life are projected.
But oh, those movies, and that Gracie. She's laugh-out-loud funny, even after all this time, and every appearance, whether on-screen or in voice-over, brightens the room.
Still, Braithwaite is always charming, an excellent tour guide though the life of this quintessential showbiz couple, and with a script that tosses out revelation after revelation, Burns is surely never dull.
Say Goodnight, Gracie
Written by Rupert Holmes, directed by Kevin Glaccum, scenery and costumes by Bill Pollock , sound by Matthew Aaron, lighting by James Leitner.
Cast: Tony Braithwaite.
Playing at: Act II Playhouse, 56 E. Butler Ave., Ambler.
Through Sunday, Dec. 17.
Tickets: $25 to $40.
Information: 215-654-0200 or
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