King Pausole

It would take an inspired director and a truly brilliant production to make something satisfactory out of The Adventures of King Pausole. Albert Willemetz's libretto, based on a novel by Pierre Louys, is an incoherent and frequently boring farce, moving from one extended gag to the next within a ridiculous plot. The pre-occupation with sex makes even the usual Hasty Pudding obsession seem mild, while the amours of various hermaphroditic characters is embarrassingly unfunny. The play's tasteless broadness clashes incongruously with Arthur Honegger's witty and sophisticated score which is its only saving grace.

Despite a cast containing many of the best singers around Harvard, the Lowell House Opera's production failed either to elevate the play or to do justice to Honegger's score. In the last act there was an inspirational moment suggesting what might have been done with the show: the king asks for some hot chocolate, and the stage is immediately inundated with his entire retinue, led by four flamenco dancers, in a hilarious parody. But this, and a few other isolated touches, were the only light spots in a generally strained evening.

Although allowances should be made for opening night missed cues and bad timing, it was still obvious that Alan Rinzler's direction left much to be desired. A play such as this requires imagination, subtlety, and a sense for absurdity which his staging lacked. The pacing was poor, and the blocking did nothing more than to solve the problem of a large cast on a small stage. The jest of funny characterizations soon wore thin, and nothing was done to sustain interest as the play wore on.

The cast struggled energetically with their parts, but except for Arthur Papas' amusing role, everyone grew wearisome quickly. Alvarez Bulos, as the king, had some difficulties with lines, but otherwise was deft and urbane. As his daughter, O'Brien Nicholas looked and sang as prettily as usual. Betsy Peterson Spiro, as the first wife, brought off her torch song effectively, complete with sultry advances toward Master Perkins, who was lucky enough to be in the first row. Harvey White and Mai Brigitta Milk handled the Eunuch "without an operation" and the "paradox" as cleanly as possible. Mr. Rinzler, except for a tendency toward rock'n'roll left over from last year, sang well, and the minor roles were done with spirit.

Joel Lazar's conducting was vigorous but not always in full control, although he managed Honegger's tricky rhythms effectively. The orchestra, although several of the instrumentalists were very good, fell short of the mark, and their consistently poor intonation and tentative string sound detracted greatly from the musical portions. Some of the big ensembles came off well, mainly owing to the well-trained and skillful chorus.

It is unfortunate that so many talented performers, as well as some nice sets and costumes, should be thrown away on a show of this calibre. About twice as much preparation, as well as a re-staging, might have turned it into a success, but it would have been an uphill campaign all the way.