“Beau Jest”

[rating=4]Many of you are now aware of a treasure of a storefront in Glenview that is called the Oil Lamp Theater. When one enters the door of this cozy intimate space, one is greeted as if they were coming over for Friday night dinner with the family ( the extended family) each and ever time. They do plays that are meaningful and orientated to the communities they serve. Comedies are a speciality, and they do them with style and grace. Currently, they are presenting a James Sherman delight, “Beau Jest”. Sherman is our area’s version of Neil Simon. He writes about life in general, as we have experienced or viewed it. His characters might just be family members of yours ( and you do not have to be Jewish to love this one/but it wouldn’t hurt!).

Beau Jest is about a Jewish girl, Sarah ( played to perfection by  Madeline Baird) who is in love with Chris ( deftly handled by Mathias Blake), but he is not Jewish. She told her family that they were “over”, but they have still been dating. To keep peace with her mother, Miriam ( played to perfection by Julie Mitre) and her father, Abe ( a superb job by Ken Rubenstein who has great timing and seems t have a tinge of Tevye in his manners), she has invented a Jewish boyfriend. In the first scene, it is the night her parents are coming over for dinner, along with her brother , Joel ( well done by Alex Lreys) and to meet this new Beau.

Sarah, not knowing what to do, hires a stand-in from an agency to pretend to be David, a Doctor, no less, for the night. Robert ( Zach Finch is about as ideal as one might get for this major role) is new at being an escort and as the evening progresses, we find out that he is not even Jewish. He fakes his way through the first encounter with the Goldman Family and does a few return visits, each time earning more points not only with the Goldman klan, but with Sarah as well.

That’s about all I can say without ruining the story for you. It is a warm story about family, traditions, and honesty ( you will see what this means in the second act) and love. Directed by Elizabeth Mazur Levin ( who probably has a better understanding of Sarah’s mental state than others, on a stage that is quite small, this version works. The comic timing on the part of each character is sheer perfection and as always at Oil Lamp, the audience leaves the theater with a good feeling about the past two hours they have spent together being entertained.

As I have said, since discovering this gem ( thank you Mike Horn) right on Glenview Road ( West of Waukegan Rd), “downtown” Glenview at 1723 Glenview Road, your host Keith Gerth is in fact, your host and he will pour your wine ( BYO-no fees) or a soda and they always have candy and nuts out for your enjoyments as well as assorted cookies to nibble upon. As I said, just like visiting a friend or family member, every time.

“Beau Jest” will continue thru July 17th with performances as follows:

Price: $40

Show Type: Comedy

Box Office: 847-834-0738

www.oillamptheater.org      Plenty of free street parking or the lot just to the west of the theater.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “Beau Jest”