Newcity Stage

Theater, Dance, Comedy and Performance in Chicago

Drury Lane Theatre Stages a Mid-Century “Father of the Bride” More mid-century than modern, this production takes its cues from Caroline Francke's original stage adaptation, set in a 1950s suburban milieu that predates the beloved Steve Martin film.

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by Tristan Bruns
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Three actors perform on stage in a brightly lit living room set. A man in glasses and a green sweater stands between two women in floral dresses, who are holding onto his arms. The scene suggests a dramatic or comedic moment.

Drury Lane Theatre’s “Father of the Bride,” with Aurora Penepacker, Joe Dempsey and Rachel Sullivan/Photo: Justin Barbin

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“Putting on a play […] isn’t so different from putting on a wedding,” writes Michael Heitzman, director of the new adaptation of “Father of the Bride,” based on the hit comedic novel by Edward Streeter published in 1949 and running through May 31 at Drury Lane Theatre. There is truth in that—like navigating a budget, customizing wardrobe, scouting for scenic designers, etc. Another parallelism is a focus on tradition, and whether to adhere to it or not. This “Father of the Bride” plays it straight, eschewing a modern setting in favor of the original stage adaptation by Caroline Francke set in the 1950s.

The Banks are representative of the white, suburban, middle-class family of the mid-twentieth century. Joe Dempsey plays the persnickety patriarch, Stanley Banks, who faces an existential dilemma through both the symbolic “loss” of his daughter to marriage and the material loss of money to pay for her wedding. Dempsey gives a lively performance, communicating Stanley’s complicated emotional juxtaposition of despair and elation by throwing intense tantrums and pacing gratuitously the length of the wide living room set.

His daughter Kay (Aurora Penepacker) is sweet, charming and independent, yet still cannot free herself from the allure of a large wedding, conflicting with the more modest proposal of elopement by her debonair but nervous fiancé, Buckley (Jake DiMaggio Lopez). Traditional housewife Ellie Banks (Rachel Sullivan) and Kay’s clean-cut brothers, Ben (Kyle Ringley) and Tommy (Charlie Long), do all that they can to assuage their father while simultaneously plotting their own agendas for Kay’s wedding. The pace of the play is frenetic, with new twists and turns keeping both audience and actors on the edge of their seats.

A man in a black tuxedo stands with arms outstretched in an open doorway, while two workers in blue coveralls move large ornate vases with plants on either side of him. The background shows greenery and a blue sky.

Drury Lane Theatre’s “Father of the Bride,” with Ed Kross/Photo: Justin Barbin

The funniest moments occur during interstitial scenes featuring non-family characters. Ed Kross as Mr. Massoula, an event planner with a thin mustache and plucking Spanish accent, bursts in like a whirlwind, literally throwing around large pictures of ornate wedding cakes and magically moving lighting fixtures. Stanley’s secretary, Miss Bellamy (Michele Vazaquez), engaged in helping organize the guest list, erupts in a fit when the family members pad the card index of attendees behind her back, resulting in a shrill and piercing meltdown.

Ben’s girlfriend, Peggy Swift (Maya Hlava), is the stereotype of a naïve young woman, and acts as the perfect foil to Stanley’s dour worldliness, particularly in a scene near the play’s finale, where she is sent into heaving convulsions by Stanley’s jaded disputations. The introductions of these characters are refreshing breaks for when the family’s bickering threatens to become repetitive.

“Each version [of the play] reflects its era,” writes Heitzman, a program note that leads one to believe that one is about to experience an updated narrative. That is not the case. Rooted in the 1950s United States, the play is rife with tropes of the era. Women desire a fancy, expensive wedding, while the men in the play are portrayed as both the voices of reason and as inept dolts. Based on past work like “42nd Street,” director Heitzman has the chops to do a reimagining of the property. And while it would have been interesting to experience a new take that reflects modern sensibilities, the play does succeed in accurately presenting the comedic proclivities of a slice in time.

Two women in vintage dresses react dramatically in a bright, elegant living room as papers flutter through the air. One woman sits on the steps, smiling, while the other stands with hands to her mouth in surprise.

Drury Lane Theatre’s “Father of the Bride,” with Aurora Penepacker and Rachel Sullivan/Photo: Justin Barbin

Regardless of the period and setting, the play nails the theme of a parent experiencing the precursors of empty-nest syndrome, and Stanley’s process of grieving over the “loss” of his daughter (not to mention his pocketbook) is both very funny and endearing. A play is like a wedding, and “Father of the Bride” captures the love, laughter and trepidation of new beginnings as if it were the real thing.

“Father of the Bride” runs through May 31 at Drury Lane Theatre, 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace. Tickets are $85-$150 and available at drurylanetheatre.com.