The Flying Doctor
Venue 3 Nordic Studio Theatre
4 Stars
Whenever the Fringe hosts an adaptation of 17th-century French playwright Moliere's works, it morphs into an hour of goofball silliness. Styled after Italy’s commedia dell’arte theatre, The Flying Doctor mashes together all the stereotypes.
There’s Valentine, the madly in love young man forbidden to see Lucy, the young ingenue he desires to marry. Lucy’s stuffy avaricious father, Mr. Clatterbuck, wishes her to marry Mr. Ottercreek, a detestable older, well-heeled businessman who could “buy and sell Saskatchewan 50 times over.”
Mrs. Wren, Lucy’s aunt and a woman of the world, tries to convince her brother to allow the two to marry. And finally, there’s Spurdle, Valentine’s clever valet who has the unenviable task of finding a way to bring the two lovers together.
At this point Rory Turner, who is both co-director and Spurdle, does most of the comedic heavy lifting using slapstick and buffoonery to keep the momentum up. The dialogue is full of snappy one-liners, the love story is innocent and the humour is sharp.
