Dubbed a "revisical" by author-adapter Timothy Gray, High Spirits originally had a large cast that included ghosts who frequently flew about a large stage. In Sarasota, for the first time, the characters are down to earth and pretty much in the number and drawing-room proximity that Noel Coward originally created. With his clever lyrics and stylistic closeness to Coward, Gray has turned out an entertaining musical of manners.
To research spiritualism for a new book, mystery writer Charles Condamine invites Madame Arcati to his Hampstead Heath estate. She holds a seance along with Charles' wife Ruth and guests Dr. and Mrs. Bradman. Rap! Back comes Elvira, the first Mrs. Condomine, whom only Charles can see and hear. Since she's eager to get him back and dislikes Ruth, there's constant intrigue. Whenever she's not making fun of Ruth by moving objects scarily, she's swishing about when Ruth talks to her or getting Charles to say sharp things that Ruth mistakenly thinks meant for her. Elvira's most mischievous plan backfires, though. Now Madame Arcati's called to double duty -- and what a smashing end that brings about!
Happily, even when accents go astray, the principals enunciate well. Sophisticated Catherine Randazzo's plaintive "Was She Prettier Than I?" balances Ruth's early shrewish tendencies. By the time she wonders "Where Is the Man I Married?," she's garnered a bit of sympathy. With "If I Gave You" she gets much more. Angela Bond's Elvira is so sexy, she hardly needs tell Charles "You'd Better Love Me." Their "Forever and a Day" is the kind of sweet love duet that can even survive out of context. Bond also makes the most of "Home Sweet Heaven," Elvira's adroit rhymed descriptions of famous and infamous acquaintances in the beyond. More than the simple (almost simple-minded) Cockney maid she appears to be, Edith's importance is underscored by Kyle Turoff, speedy in service, brassy in song.
As expected of the vivacious Roberta McDonald, her Madame Arcati tunefully zips in from London on her bicycle, her journey marked by projections of the countryside and the wearing of a stiff scarf that seems blown by the wind. Another whimsical visual effect: dancing dishes to accompany her "Something Is Coming to Tea." Mostly, McDonald's Arcati is lovably zany, as in "Go Into Your Trance." Only J. T. O'Connor disappoints; his Charles is blah.
Costumes for the wives are so glamorous and bright (sequins, rhinestones, beads), they distract. At first sight, they prompted admiring remarks from women around me, a problem worsened by a sound system not properly adjusted early on. It made the overture seem a rather general introduction and the music, though well arranged and played, a few times competitive with the soloists. Problems (including somewhat slow choreography of sighted and unsighted mix-ups) should be eliminated shortly. Then the production will truly be as highly spirited as might be conjured up.
