Fiona is having an affair with one of Frank’s employees, Bob Phillips. Darren Pettie portrays Bob with a somewhat loutish and almost menacing air, especially when dealing with his loud and complaining wife, Teresa. Teresa, as played by Geneva Carr, is a stressed and neglected new mother, who suspects Bob of cheating on her and is somewhat shrewish in her manner of pointing out to Bob her views of their unbalanced relationship.
Rounding out the trio of maladjusted marriages are William and Mary Featherstone. When questioned about their whereabouts on the night of one of their evening trysts, Bob and Fiona both tell their spouses that they were with William and Mary respectively, to lend a supportive ear to their tales of the breakup of their marriage because of infidelity. Of course, this is the lie that sets the dinner parties in motion, to the delight and confusion of the young Featherstones, who are portrayed by Carson Elrod and Karen Walsh.
Carson Elrod embodies the young nobody who, as the low man on the work totem pole, is more than willing to brown-nose his way into a promotion by courting advances with his coworker and boss. Karen Walsh, with wide-eyed innocence, is perfect as his overly shy and socially naïve wife, who has to learn to navigate the tricky waters of office politics and the blustering bullying of her equally socially inadequate husband.
It all sounds very serious and could easily border on tragedy, but the witty dialogue filled with double entendres, along with brilliant comedic timing, outstanding performances, and the interwoven dual sets all combine to make How The Other Half Loves an engaging evening of entertainment. I highly recommend this show for a night filled with laughter. How The Other Half Loves runs through August 15th at the Westport Country Playhouse.
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