"Noises Off" (2017)

Written by Michael Frayn

Directed by Tom Huston Orr

Lighting Design by Caitlin Coffin

Costume Design by Erin Lavespere

University of Oklahoma School of Drama

NOISES OFF - 1/8”=1’0”

'Noises Off' takes farcical look at creating theatrical productions

NORMAN — "Noises Off" is a difficult show to put on well. When the components of the show are taken apart — timing, physicality, prop management, characterization — it just seems more daunting, which makes it all the more impressive when done well, as it is in OU University Theatre’s production.

The show, set around a fictional production called "Nothing On," is a farcical look at what it takes to stage a theatrical production. Within that production are romantic entanglements, dramatic pantomiming and the slamming of many doors as the night goes on.

OU’s production of "Noises Off," directed by Tom Huston Orr, focuses on three performances of "Nothing On": the dress rehearsal, a show one month later and a show near the end of the tour. Each performance brings something different, and the audience can watch the play go from bad to worse to trainwreck over the course of its run.

One of the most impressive parts of the production is the two-story set, designed by Nathan Hatfield. The warm backdrop of the first and third acts' set design is starkly contrasted by the chaos happening on stage, and the bare wooden bones of the second act's set, which is back-of-house, helps augment the quieter drama happening across the two stories.

- Allison Weintraub for The OU Daily