The Renton Civic Theater’s production of Canadian playwright Norm Foster’s “Here on the Flight Path” opens today (April 8) at the downtown Renton theater for a two-week run.
Called a charming, witty date-night play by its actors, the show is about newly divorced John Cummings and is set in 1997 Toronto, Canada. Cummings narrates the play that reflects on his philosophy of life and his relationship with three women who each happen to be his neighbor during the course of 3 1/2 years. The scenes take place on the balconies of the Terrace Apartments – right in the middle of the flight path of a near by airport.
Director Bill Huls calls the play funny and very poignant at times.
“It uses the one thing I always think is the funniest thing in the world, reality,” he said. “That’s the comedy. It’s real, so it’s really good.”
Huls decided to stage the play in Renton after a good friend, the sound designer, Jay Biederman, saw the show in Vacouver, B.C., and encouraged him to direct it. Huls said the playwright, Foster, is considered the Neil Simon of Canada. Simon is the prolific American playwright famous for “Lost in Younkers” and “The Odd Couple.”
Actor Alan Wilkie, 48, plays Cummings and said the character was surprisingly challenging to portray. He is used to playing character roles. This one’s familiarity threw him at first.
“It’s very close to me as a human being,” Wilkie said. “I’m kind of a cynical [wise crack] and a hopeless romantic.”
During the course of the play, Cummings undergoes a change with each woman he encounters and goes from being cynical to actually wanting to be in a relationship again.
Actress Heather McRobbie, 28, is challenged to play three roles.
There’s Fay, the prostitute who’s more like an escort and tough and guarded in what she wants to share about herself, McRobbie said.
Angel is kind of young and innocent, some perceive as being the airhead. And then there’s Gwen, the older married woman with a child, who’s going through a divorce. McRobbie describes her as even more naive than Angel, having never really lived outside of her world with her husband, her high school sweetheart.
“I tried to think outside of the script a good bit,” said McRobbie. “I knew that I wanted them to walk differently, have different postures, have different speech patterns.”
She said the play may start out as focused on Cummings and what he’s learned from each of the women, but as it goes on it seems more about the women.
There are zingers that poke fun of the stereotypes of each gender.
“So, I think everybody will have something to laugh at which will be nice, plus something more serious to connect with as well,” said McRobbie.
RCT play showtimes
“Here on the Flight Path” runs Thursdays, 7:30 p.m., Fridays and Saturdays, 8 p.m. and Sundays 2 p.m. today (April 8) through April 23.
Tickets are $22 for adults and $17 for students and seniors. Tickets are available by calling the Box Office at 425-226-5529 or visit the theater’s website.
