‘The Underpants’ are not so dirty at The Hilberry
DETROIT — With a title like The Underpants, you expect a little bawdiness.
However, Steve Martin’s (yes, that Steve Martin) adaptation of the 1911 German farce “Die Hose” by Carl Sternheim is pretty PG-rated. The action revolves around what happens after Louise (Antonia LaChe) accidentally drops her underpants in public during the king’s parade. LaChe gives a solid, energetic performance as the somewhat air-headed and put-upon housewife.
While Louise insists that no one witnessed her mishap — she quickly kneeled and picked up the bloomers in her shawl — the truth is that several men saw them and now are enchanted with her. They come calling to her home and upon seeing a “for rent” sign for a boarder, a bidding war erupts as several would like to live there in order to be closer to her.
Married only a year to the stuffy and chauvinistic Theo (Brandon Wright), she confesses to her neighbor Gertruse (Wesley Cady) that, because Theo says they can’t afford a child, they haven’t had sex since their honeymoon. Upon hearing the sad news, Gertruse quickly begins to scheme that Louise deserves to take a lover, and the first of the suitors — Frank Versati (Ernest Bentley)–is a perfect candidate. Bentley gives a charming performance as the poet/Casanova, who is bound and determined to bed Louise.
The second suitor — Benjamin Cohen (Cody Robison) is more of a nerdy voyeur. He denies his Jewish heritage, insisting that is it Kohen with a K and not a C, indicative of the time period in which the play is set where being Jewish is not without stigma. The third suitor is uptight-as-Theo, late-to-the-party Klinglehoff (James Kern), who shows up near the end of the play.
As always, the Hilberry does a lovely job with costumes (Mary Elizabeth Valesano) and the set (Emily Willemse).
The nearly two-hour play, directed by Scotty Arnold, has no intermission and starts to drag a bit near the end, although the final scene is worth the wait. It takes the entire play for Louise to finally realize the power she has as a result of her attractiveness.
While this isn’t a slapstick comedy, it does offer its share of amusement and tongue-in-cheek humor. It’s also a good reminder of how lucky we are that the times have changed, for the most part.