PERFECT, INDEED: TERRIFIC—AND TIMELY
The Bent Theatre, Palm Springs’ queer theatre company now in its third season, continues to prove its significance not only for the LGBTQ+ community but for the greater theatre scene as well. Their current production of Perfect Arrangement —which opened last night—exemplifies this beautifully.
Topher Payne’s script is a work of genius. The U.S. government’s shameful persecution of gays and lesbians in the 1950s is cleverly presented as a sitcom, filled with rapid-fire double entendres, slamming doors, unexpected visits, and near-misses. But beneath the humor lies the devastating reality that these policies destroyed countless careers and lives.
Bob (Eric Seppala) and Norma (Laura Stearns) work for the State Department, tasked with rooting out “sexual degenerates.” The irony? Both Bob and Norma are gay and secretly in same-sex relationships. Bob is with Jim (Terry Ray), while Norma is with Millie (Angela Landis). To maintain appearances, the two couples have devised a “perfect arrangement,” living in adjoining apartments with hidden doorways through their closets. Bob and Millie present as a married couple in one apartment, while Norma and Jim do the same in the other.
The setting is instantly familiar, with a swinging kitchen door, a white-shuttered hatchway, a spinet piano upstage, and a cozy fireplace—we all spent countless hours with Ricky and Lucy hosting Ethel and Fred in the same apartment. The homage is sealed as the I Love Lucy theme music briefly plays when the lights come up.
The play opens with the “married” couples entertaining Bob and Norma’s boss, Mr. Sunderson (Jeffrey Norman), and his ditzy wife, Kitty (Barbara Kerr), in Bob and Millie’s apartment. Since we are in on the premise, seemingly innocent lines take on hilarious new meaning given the hidden relationships. Characters occasionally do a “take” towards the camera (us) and the dialogue is sprinkled with vintage-style commercial endorsements such as “Yes, my hair is lustrous and manageable with my new (brand name) shampoo.” The device is very funny.
In true farcical fashion, Act I is devoted to introducing the characters and the precarious setup. Jason Reale’s direction embraces classic farce, complete with multiple entrances and impeccably timed near-misses. The set even has four entrances, indicative of a farce, and there are plenty of ‘one character enters through one door as another character exits through another door’ moments. All hilarious stuff.
However, towards the end the act, the stakes shift. Barbara Grant (Deborah Harmon), a State Department translator, unexpectedly visits and thinks she recognizes Millie. Desperate to avoid exposure, Millie goes through all sorts of machinations to obscure her face. But Barbara remembers her brief affair with Millie years ago, which now gives Barbara the power to destroy the perfect arrangement by outing Millie.
As the couples grapple with their reality in Act II, it’s time for them to stand up for their rights as gay people—the seeds of the coming gay rights revolution begin to emerge. Despite the deepening tension, the second act remains filled with sharp wit and humor. Norma is especially militant, as is Barbara, who delivers a rousing speech about standing up for one’s rights that earns spontaneous applause. The ending—which I won’t spoil—follows the show’s formula of tickle, tickle, slap! Patrons seemed universally stunned as they left the theatre.
The acting is uniformly good, especially Laura Stearn’s forceful Norma and Barbara Kerr’s delusional boss’s wife, Kitty. Mr. Norman comes up a bit short in the second act when he visits Bob with a message of do or die. Rather than frightening, his character’s ominous authority is undermined by frequent “um’s,” suggesting line struggles.
Beyond his terrific direction, Jason Reale also designed and painted the set, masterfully creating plenty of three-dimensional molding, picture frames, and knickknacks painted on the flat walls. Cherlyn Lanning’s costumes capture 1950s glamour, with men in sports coats and women in elegant cocktail dresses, complete with hats and carefully coiffed hair. The delightful visual treat has each character sporting a fresh 1950s look in each of the seven scenes, causing anticipation as to what the characters would wear next. Lynda Shaeps’ wigs are period-perfect, up to her usual high standards, and Nick Wass’s lighting subtly supports the action without distraction.
However, sound issues persist at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. Is it actors not projecting or Jesus Mercado‘s otherwise perfect sound design? Despite The Bent’s apparent investment in electronic amplification, audibility remains a problem, even as a few performers had visible mics on their faces. It can be extremely difficult to hear many of the actors, especially Barbara Kerr’s mousey wife, who was so humorous when audible, she deserves amplification.
While the anti-gay discrimination of the 1950s may seem like a relic of the past, modern parallels abound. Current headlines reveal government employees being dismissed for perceived disloyalty for having worked on the January 6th examination, echoing the purges of the Lavender Scare. The eerie relevance is creepy, to say the least.
Practically perfect in every way—as a great nanny once said—Perfect Arrangement is an important and wildly entertaining play. Let Stage and Cinema know what you think.
photos by Tara Howard
Perfect Arrangement
The Bent Theatre
in association with The Palm Springs Cultural Center
Camelot Theatres, 2300 East Baristo Road in Palm Springs
Fri and Sat at 7; Sun at 2
ends on February 16, 2025
for tickets ($42), visit The Bent
