Half a century on, 'Towers' offers fans a tribute and a meal
'Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience' runs through Oct. 13 in Stage 2 of Blume Studios
This review by longtime Charlotte arts critic Lawrence Toppman was published by The Charlotte Ledger on September 27, 2024. You can find out more about The Charlotte Ledger’s commitment to smart local news and information and sign up for our newsletter for free here. And check out this link for Toppman’s archive of reviews in the Ledger.
Review: ‘Faulty Towers’ dinner show brings British comedy to Charlotte at the new Blume Studios
Cast members flow around the dining room during “Faulty Towers,” a show inspired by 1970s British TV show “Fawlty Towers.” (Photo courtesy of Blumenthal Arts)
by Lawrence Toppman
I wonder what the other seven people at my table made of “Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience.” None had seen the 1970s British TV show that inspired it, which ran for just 12 episodes yet ranks with many critics among the greatest TV sitcoms. (No argument from me.)
They laughed at Basil Fawlty’s stammering rages and insults, wife Sybil’s alternating bouts of calm and irascibility, Spanish waiter Manuel’s misunderstandings of English and physical comedy. They probably wondered why Manuel ran around with a pet hamster, a gag from the show, or Basil kept referring to one hapless diner as “the German,” blaming him for problems: Basil always had an idee fixe that German guests caused crises.
But I will tell you, as a 50-year fan of “Fawlty Towers,” that the actors in this first-ever production at Blume Studios know what they’re about.
The most recent addition to the cast gives the most exact impression of the original performer: Benedict Holmes nails John Cleese’s scurrying, spavined walk, eternally pained expression, archly nasal voice and sarcastic manner. Leigh Kelly, who has played Manual for 13 years, nimbly handles pratfalls and the half-ingratiating, half-imbecilic attitude. Karina Garnett has played Sybil’s underwritten part since 2012 without letting it get stale, though I could have done without a braying laugh that recalled Eddie Murphy’s Donkey in “Shrek.”
The spelling of the title has been changed to avoid confusion with both the TV show and “Fawlty Towers On Stage,” now running in London’s West End with the full cast of TV characters performing a script by Cleese. “Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience,” now at Studio Blume’s Stage 2, uses just three actors abetted by non-acting servers.
This smaller-scale version began 27 years ago as the debut production by Interactive Theatre Australia, now interactive Theatre International. Both the original producers and Blumenthal Performing Arts bill this as “immersive,” rather than “interactive.” The cast flow around the large dining room where everything takes place, but patrons rarely get involved except for being asked to hold a fire extinguisher or look for Manuel’s escaped rodent.
Actually, things begin with a “reception” in a large room next to the dining area. There you order at a cash bar and get a brief taste of what will happen as you eat. Manuel, told to fetch snacks, botches the job. Basil placates the crowd, making double entendres — “Manuel, this gentleman has no nuts!” — and Sybil eventually arrives to shepherd us into the dining room.
I’ve been told the show is 70 percent improvised, though every gag in the promotional video on YouTube turned up Thursday night. On the other hand, Sybil seemed genuinely startled when waiters brought on an entrée too early; she shooed them off, and Basil held an odd, perhaps impromptu mock fire drill.
Some funny bits are unpredictable; most rely on obvious misunderstandings: When Manuel starts tossing dinner rolls at the audience, Basil barks in pidgin English, “No, Manuel! Roll on plate!” You can bet, as soon as he’s gone, Manuel will put a plate on the floor and roll on it with a nifty somersault.
That lone roll is the gateway to a modestly filling meal. Dinner theater veterans know food will be warm, not hot; service for 120 people eating at once will be sporadic; portions will be reasonable though not generous.
The event offers vegetarian and vegan options. While everyone else ate chicken, a small helping of potatoes and vegetables, I enjoyed a chunky portobello mushroom under a few slices of grilled veggies. Everyone gets the roll, a bowl of tomato basil soup, no sides and a tasty slice of cheesecake in strawberry sauce you can finish in six normal bites.
The two-hour afternoon or evening slots devote 30 minutes to the reception and 90 minutes to the meal and mayhem, which happens mostly between courses or during the rolls and soup. We eat our entrées unmolested and get cheesecake once the cast have taken bows, departing after one last raucous gag.
If You’re Going: “Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience” runs through Oct. 13 in Stage 2 of Blume Studios, 900 Post St. Shows are at 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, plus noon on Saturdays and Sundays.
Lawrence Toppman covered the arts for 40 years at The Charlotte Observer before retiring in 2020. Now, he’s back in the critic’s chair for the Charlotte Ledger — look for his reviews about two times each month in the Charlotte Ledger.
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