'Boeing Boeing' full of comedic delight

Becoming engaged to three women at the same time appears on the surface to be rather implausible. However, in Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy's production of Boeing Boeing, polygamy becomes the order of the day as one man attempts to illustrate the rational, reasonable, and downright common-sense logic of betrothing multiple women.

Boeing Boeing, a farce written by French playwright Marc Camoletti and translated into English by Beverley Cross, chronicles the story of Bernard, a suave Parisian businessman who finagles his way into engagements with three separate alluring and foreign stewardesses. When Robert, an old friend, comes to stay, Bernard's careful balancing of the three engagements shatters, one fiancee falling in love with the friend, one desperately clinging to Bernard, and a third tossing up both men for an American, all three still blissfully ignorant of each others' existence.

Barrack Hebrew Academy's production of Boeing Boeing was anchored by the energy and intimacy of the closely-knit six-member ensemble. The cast embraced the rather absurd, dramatic, and over-the-top nature of the farce, committing wholeheartedly to physicality, noise, and general drama. Drawing laughter constantly and yet still creating tension, the show built upon itself, climaxing with a two-man tussle on the floor, a successive series of ridiculous kisses, and a heart-felt closing moment acknowledging the human heart behind the comedy.

David Treatman's (Robert) confident, slightly derisive, and just a half-step off-beat character garnered frequent laughs. His strong physicality, dynamism, and artful use of pauses to create both comedic and romantic tension lent him the air of a man who knows his way with women, accented by his interactions with Sophia Ostroff (Gretchen), his frequent scene-partner.

Absurd, heavily-accented, and with beautiful comic timing, Anna Lieberman (Berthe) stole the comedic spotlight and was mirrored by the slightly awkward, slightly suave, and slightly dramatic Ariel Koltun-Fromm (Bernard), who provoked his own laughs as the mastermind behind the three-fiancee plan.

Daniel Horowitz, the student director, manipulated space and set to masterfully add to the general drollery; the well-timed slamming of doors and startling entrances and exits added comedic elements that drew laughter and applause.

Though the play began with a fast-paced Act I that was sometimes difficult to understand, Barrack Hebrew Academy's production of Boeing Boeing was a farce at its utmost, laugh-inducing, thought-provoking, and closing with a comedic yet touchingly poignant final scene.