L U N A T A L K with Eva Moon

Boeing Boeing

October 7, 2007 on 11:15 am | In General Musing, Travel |

No way.

That was my first thought on seeing the title “Boeing Boeing” on the list of theatre offerings at TKTS. I’m a third of the way around the world from Seattle - the last thing I want is to be reminded of home. But nothing else was looking too appealing and the last round of theatre going had turned out disappointing. I looked it up.

It turns out that Boeing Boeing has nothing to do with a Seattle company. It is a French farce, translated to English and performed off and on in London since 1962. It’s the very silly story of a three-timing Lothario who lives right by Orly airport in Paris and has landed a supposedly perfect arrangement of three flight attendant fiances on three different flight schedules that keep one heading out the door as the next arrives. Of course, the perfect arrangement crashes spectacularly and hilariously after a bumbling old friend from the country shows up at the door. It’s a period piece for sure. It has that dated (Oh you know those girls - you can pull anything over on them and they’ll fall for it) feel that doesn’t really fly anymore, but it was so charmingly done with such amusingly dreadful French covers of 60’s pop songs that you can’t help but go along with it.

The play’s current home is an elaborately-iced four-tiered wedding cake of a little theatre. We were in the second row of the bottom tier and had a great view (those cute little 60s stewardess uniforms had short skirts). Jean Marsh (Upstairs Downstairs) plays the crotchety maid and stole every scene she was in. There was a movie version of the play made in 1965 starring Tony Curtis and Jerry Lewis that I have no desire to see.

It was a complete piece of fluff, but just the thing after all the heavy pomp of the day.

Picadilly Circus, near the Theatre District

See more like that one:

• Hand me that Dutchman
• Squeeze Play
• No Sailor Moon
• Feets Don't Fail Me Now
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