The many faces of Andrew Lebrun in rehearsal for AFD Theatre’s comedy Unnecessary Farce, on stage for two weekends May 11 through May 20. / Photos by Mary Babic
While Arlington resident Andrew Lebrun originally thought the role of the crazed and sometimes unintelligible Scottish assassin Todd in AFD Theatre’s Unnecessary Farce might be a fun role, director Stephen Rourke saw him more as police officer Eric Sheridan. Lebrun is now deep in the character of the shy but frantic Sheridan, finding the humor in the depth of the role — and the satisfaction in the character arc.
Opening Friday, May 11, the comedy by Paul Slade Smith is Arlington Friends of the Drama’s final production of the season. The farce runs two weekends, with shows May 11, 12, 18, and 19 at 8 p.m. and May 13 and 20 at 4 p.m.
Tickets are $20 and may be purchased online at www.ticketstage.com or at the box office before each performance.
About his role in the play, Lebrun said, “He’s the type of character I’m particularly good at playing: nervous, excited, neurotic. He’s a fast thinker, even though not always the right thoughts.”
Lebrun notes he’s always had an instinct for comic timing, having performed in several productions with the Somerville community troupe Theater@First. He prefers comedy to drama; among his favorite roles are Zombie Shakespeare in Shakespeare Lives, Murray in Oscar and Felix at Hovey Players in 2013 and Algernon in Importance of Being Earnest.
‘Really fun to do so many things at once’
“The show opens with me frantically getting dressed while I’m on the phone with my boss, laying out some critical exposition. It’s really fun to do so many things at once, but it’s an effort to pull it all off—the clothes, the phone cord. I have to button it up just right,” Lebrun explained.
Unnecessary Farce
by Paul Slade Smith; directed by Stephen Rourke
Fridays, May 11 and 18, at 8 p.m.
Saturdays, May 12 and 19, at 8 p.m.
Sundays, May 13 and 20, at 4 p.m.
Opening-night champagne reception after the show.
First Sunday talkback after the show.
Purchase tickets >>
Mother’s Day special: Bring Mom that day, and she gets in for free. This two-for-one ticket special is available at the box office only for the May 13 matinee at 4.
In a cheap motel room, an embezzling mayor is supposed to meet with his female accountant–while in the room next door two undercover cops wait to catch the meeting on videotape.
But there’s some confusion as to who’s in which room, who’s being videotaped, who’s taken the money, who’s hired a hit man, and why the accountant keeps taking off her clothes.
Since Rourke, the director, keeps the focus on getting into character, “He asked me to come up with some physical bits of humor, and it was a challenge, but so fun.”
Lebrun offered praise for cast and director both. “I tend to play the role of someone so nerdy as talking quickly and quietly, but Stephen emphasizes articulation and diction, so the audience can hear every word.”
The play is set in “the present,” but Lebrun said the cast and production team imagine it’s sometime in the 1990s, in Anytown, USA. “It’s very funny and fast, and more than one person in the cast ends up in their underwear during the course of the play.”
Testing for laughs
Since the show runs at a breakneck pace, the cast staged a full run for a test audience, to figure out when to pause for laughs. As Lebrun noted, “It’s essential to know when to hold, and then, if you need to, to go back and repeat the dialogue. It’s weird how the crazy magic of theater means you can restart, and it doesn’t look odd at all.”
While the cast has been rehearsing for weeks, the action has recently come into sharper focus. “We spend a lot of time running in and out of doors, like Yakety Sax. Now that the doors have been installed on stage, it’s much better. We do a lot of slamming, and we can get the timing just right.”
Still, Lebrun notes that while Unnecessary Farce is manic, it’s also genuine. “We’re trying hard to find what’s real in the character, to find the sincerity in their actions. While it can veer toward the farcical, the more you get into the character, the more laughs there are,” he said.
Years in theater, starting in Methuen
Lebrun, who grew up in Methuen, participated in theater throughout school, but took a break during his college years at Northeastern University. He studied information science and works at Carbonite in Boston.
Recently, he’s participated in 24-hour play festivals, which pose challenges for everyone involved. Friday night at 8, the writers get a line and a prop, and they build a play around those overnight. On Saturday morning, they deliver the play to the actors, who then mount the play that night. In one scenario, Lebrun was called to the basement of a friend, who’d killed his wife; together, they plotted to get rid of the body.
He noted that local theater provides a great community of people, and gets him out of the house. “It’s been a nice experience at AFD, hanging out with the cast.” He said the whole cast is professional and high energy. Referring to Belmont resident Elaine Spencer, who plays his partner in uniform, Billie Dwyer, Lebrun said, “Our Billie brings a whole lot of energy to the character.”
This news announcement was published Tuesday, May 8, 2018.
