CWRU/CPH MFA’s ‘Season’s Greetings’ is great right up to the end, then alas

Photo by Roger Mastroianni

SPOILER ALERT: At the end of this review I will be revealing the “surprise ending” so if this upsets you, stop reading now.

First of all, let me state how much I love and appreciate British comedy. It is as dry as gin and just about as intoxicating. Alan Ayckbourn’s 1980 play “Season’s Greetings” is an absolute delight. It has a collection of quirky characters, illicit romance, feuding couples, violence and lots of humor. The problem is the ending, but more on that later.

Case Western Reserve University/Cleveland Play House MFA Acting Program have combined in a production of “Season’s Greetings” in the Helen Rosenfeld Lewis Bialosky Black Box Lab Theatre at Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio.

Neville (Byron Johnson) and Belinda (Meredith Nelson) have invited various and sundry relatives to their posh 80’s English suburban home. Neville owns a collection of shops which when not involved with them is in his home workshop “tinkering”. This lack of attention frustrates Belinda who spends her time puttering around the house getting it ready for the holidays.

Phyllis (Brianna Miller) is Belinda’s sister and is married to Bernard (Calder Meis) who is a so-so doctor who has strong views on non-violence. Each year Bernard creates an overly long and boring puppet show that the children actually hate. Phyllis has a bit of a drinking problem.

Eddie (Nathan Sullivan) and Pattie (Madalyn Baker) are reluctantly expecting their fourth child and their relationship has been to reduced to constant sniping at each other. Eddie is unemployed but hoping that his old school mate Neville will hire him as manager at the newest store.

Rachel (Christina McSheffrey) is Belinda’s emotionally stunted sister who has invited Clive (Brendan Lowry), a slightly successful published writer of his first and only book. Rachel hopes for a marriage without fringe benefits (no sex).

Harvey (Adam Ortega) is Neville and Phyllis’s uncle who claims 30 years experience in the “security business” and preaches that the entire population should arm themselves for the future “collapse of society as we know it”. He is addicted to TV violence which ticks Bernard’s clock.

It is Christmas Eve as the family gathers. Harvey is glued to the TV giving blow by blow descriptions of a movie that closely resembles the perennial holiday favorite “Die Hard” while Bernard voices his disapproval. Neville and Eddie are focused on the construction of a remote device that controls the Christmas tree lights and stereo (blasting Christmas music when activated). Rachel is anxiously awaiting the arrival of her “plus one”, Clive who was not on the train that she had met at the station. Rachel leaves once more to see if he has arrived on a later train. After Rachel leaves, Clive arrives and as he meets Belinda a strong mutual attraction develops. With everyone having arrived, the group crowds around a too small table for a Christmas Eve feast of lamb prepared by the inebriated Phyllis.

Christmas day dawns as Clive finds himself drawn closer to Belinda while creating more distance from Rachel. The evening draws to a close with a drunken game of snakes and ladders with Phyllis putting the make on Clive. Finally, everyone but Clive have gone upstairs when Brenda hops down to check on various things in the kitchen (did I leave the oven on...did I leave the freezer door open?). They profess their lust for each other and attempt at sex under the Christmas tree only to set off a toy drumming bear bringing the entire household downstairs.

December 26 (or Boxing Day) arrives with Bernard going through the rehearsal of three out of the sixteen scenes of his epic “The Three Little Pigs”. Harvey is timing to when the captive audience of children will arrive. Phyllis has been recruited to assist but with the three pigs identical to everyone but Bernard the rehearsal is a shambles. In desperation, Harvey grabs Pig Number One and kills The Big Bad Wolf destroying the stage in the process. Bernard is not happy. Clive attempts to apologize to Neville who simply wishes to ignore the tryst as a drunken mistake not to be repeated.

It is December 27th as an embarrassed Clive tries to sneak off in the early morning. As Rachel goes out to warm up the car, Clive goes upstairs to retrieve a gift handkerchief. Coming back down the stairs he is wearing a ski mask that Rachel gave him. Crossing the dining room Clive is confronted by Harvey who believing he is a burglar shoots him. Bernard is summoned declaring that Clive is dead. As Clive regains consciousness Rachel, Bernard and Eddie carry him to the car to take him to hospital. Harvey goes back upstairs leaving Neville and Belinda awkwardly together. The End...and that is the rub.

It simply ends with no resolution to anything. Will Clive survive? Will Belinda and Neville reconcile? Will Eddie and Pattie come to love their newest family member? Will Eddie work for Neville as a clerk? Will Harvey go to jail? Will Rachel give herself to Clive? Will Bernard stop with the puppet shows? Will Phyllis sober up? So many questions.

The collection of student actors are perfectly suited for their rolls with light accents that are believable. They work extremely well as an ensemble with not a single flubbed line in the entire 95 minute stage time with 15 minute intermission.

The set design by Jill Davis is sumptuous and extremely well appointed. Jack-Anthony Ina’s lighting runs the gambit of brightly lit to surgically precise for the intimate scenes. Costumes by Angelina Herin are 80s appropriate without being gaudy. Nicholas Drashner’s sound design works well for the small theater space.

To be honest, I thought that this production had great potential and for the most part it lived up to my expectations. It is a fine show with a lot of laughs and interesting situations. Perhaps we should commission Mr. Ayckbourn for a sequel. See the show and let me know what you think. Cheers!

The Case Western Reserve University/Cleveland Play House MFA Acting Program production of “Season’s Greetings” will be on stage in the Helen Rosenfeld Lewis Bialosky Lab Theatre at Playhouse Square through April 5, 2025. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.clevelandplayhouse.com/ or call (216) 400-7096.