Some excellent films and shows (The Philadelphia Story, Move Over Darling, My Favorite Wife) begin with a similar premise. I Close to the wedding day, an erstwhile spouse of the betrothed shows up. Making for a profoundly awkward situation. RTC’s production of Lewis Black’s One Slight Hitch, fits quite nicely,
It’s 11 AM on Courtney Coleman’s wedding day. Her parents, Doc and Delia, are dealing in their own, particular ways. Doc is unflappable, and Delia’s having a slow meltdown. She and Doc were married during wartime (and sadly) Delia was denied the exquisite wedding, so many women dream of. Not unreasonably, perhaps, she hopes to resolve the past by putting everything she has into Courtney’s wedding. Her two sisters, PB and Melanie are there, and the caterers have just started arriving.
Without warning, Ryan, Courtney’s ex-husband, shows up at the front door. He’s been hitchhiking, and decides to drop by. Seeing as he was just in the neighborhood. Ryan is the quintessential surfer boy. Adorable, innocuous, metaphysical. Needless to say, his timing couldn’t be worse. The family all know and like him, but he’s like the spaniel who jumps in bed, when you’re having sex. He throws his rancid clothes in the laundry and takes advantage of the opportunity for a shower. Courtney is enraged to see him, but maybe not too much. Can they send him on his way, before Harper (the groom) arrives?
Playwright Lewis Black has a few tricks in his deck of cards. The primitive and utterly inappropriate fertility idol. A bad omen to be sure. PB, the daughter who skates indoors, submerged in her Walkman. Ryan the unwelcome, welcome guest, walking around in a towel. The future In-Laws they must stall and ultimately chase away. Harper the more sophisticated, articulate groom.
These are not only mishaps, they’re metaphors. The spouse who’s everything the other isn’t. The delicate and flawless vase, that we all know is going to break. TheShrimp BoatsThe daughters who aren’t worried about the event, because it’s not their problem. The miniature bride and groom, besmirched in frosting. It’s as if the cosmos is orchestrating all the elements in conjunction with the “cursed” marriage.
One Slight Hitch felt low-key and subtle. More about situation than dialogue. When the graphic statues arrive, we laugh because they’re something of a shock, not necessarily from character response. When we see poor Delia trying to save the sinking ship, she’s less frantic than perplexed. We know almost from the beginning the wedding is doomed. As one shoe drops after another, the emphasis seems to be the irony. You could make a case for all humor turning on irony, some is simply more resigned than surprised. One Slight Hitch feels more like Dorothy Parker than Fanny Brice.
Special thanks to RTC for letting me attend at the end of the run.
Richardson Theatre Centre presented One Slight Hitch, July 12th-28th, 2024. 518 West Arapaho Road, Suite 113, Richardson, TX 75080. 972-699-1130