Repertory Philippines’ second show for the year, the sexy comedy “Run for Your Wife,” is running at OnStage, Greenbelt 1, until May 3.
The West End hit by Ray Cooney follows John Smith, a taxi driver who secretly has two wives. The play premiered in London’s West End in 1983, and had a successful nine-year run in the UK. After that, the show has been staged in New York, Paris, Stockholm and Manila.
“This is a timeless classic. Even if it’s an old play, it’s such a funny and well-written play,” says Miguel Faustmann, who directs Rep’s third run of the show. “Ray Cooney is amazing with his comic humor. It’s just so funny.”
“Run For Your Wife” is a departure from Rep’s previous offering, “4,000 Miles.” While the latter is a dramatic examination of a young man’s relationship with his grandmother, “Run For Your Wife” is a hilarious tale of a man who has two wives and two households.
The play’s humor relies on the subject and a precise schedule of entrances and exits. This means pressure on theater veteran Jamie Wilson as Smith, who has to literally run across the stage throughout the entire show, with only two exits. As Faustmann describes it, “Timing is of crucial importance in this play.”
Smith’s wives are portrayed by actresses Goldie Soon and Mikkie Bradshaw. Soon plays Mary, the motherly wife, while Bradshaw plays Barbara, the bombshell.
“Run for Your Wife” hits Philippine theater at a time when mistresses have become a pop culture phenomenon. But while the films and teleseryes focusing on mistresses and second wives are dramatic, the play takes on a different approach: comedy.
“It’s such a taboo subject here,” admits Wilson. “But putting on a play and inviting people to watch it will shed some light and humor on what that kind of life is. With our teleserye culture, where’s the humor? There’s got to be humor there. There’s got to be some ridiculous situation that you can laugh at.”
During its West End run, The Daily Telegraph called the play a triumph, while the New York Post promised “virtually continuous laughter.”
Joining Wilson, Soon and Bradshaw are Jeremy Domingo as John’s best friend Stanley Gardner, Steven Conde as the flamboyantly gay neighbor Bobby Franklin, James Stacey as the suspicious Detective Sergeant Troughton, Paul Holme as the easygoing Detective Sergeant Porterhouse and Mara Javier as the inquisitive journalist.
“Run for Your Wife” runs until May 3 at OnStage Theater in Greenbelt 1, Makati City. Call Repertory Philippines 8433570 or 8919999, or visit www.ticketworld.com.ph.