By Jason Whitehead
mail@floridanewsline.com
The Alhambra Theatre and Dining’s production of “A Fox on the Fairway” on gala night left the audience rolling with laughter. The show is filled with fast-paced comedy and romantic hijinks — and takes the audience on a wild ride from beginning to end.
The performance takes place at Quail Valley Country Club during the annual golf tournament with rival country club, Crouching Squirrel. Despite having the home course advantage, Quail Valley has lost the previous five years — but this year is different. Bingham (Timothy Ellis), Quail Valley Club president, has found his secret weapon in his wacky assistant, Justin (Ryan Borses). When Justin’s mind is clear, nobody can beat him. But when Justin’s love for Louise (Brittany Bennett) starts to affect his game, anything goes.
Dickie (Craig Benton), Crouching Squirrel president, makes an interesting bet with Bingham on the tournament this year. If Dickie wins, he gets Bingham’s cranky wife Muriel’s (Lisa Valdini) antique store. And if Bingham wins, he gets $200,000. Bingham enlists the help of Quail Valley’s vice president, Pamela (Becky Baxter), to help keep Louise from telling Justin that she accidentally flushed her engagement ring down the toilet. It just so happens that Pamela is Dickie’s ex-wife, so she is especially motivated to make sure Crouching Squirrel doesn’t win this year. Pamela and Bingham try to keep the dreadful news from reaching Justin, but by the end, the ring and Justin’s game are in the toilet. Comedy ensues while the rivals duke it out for the tournament and personal victory.
Borses’ and Bennet’s chemistry has the audience believing in young love. Baxter hit the mark as a scorned country club wife, who believes drinking at just 10 a.m. means she was getting a late start. Benton was fantastic as the sleazy, womanizing Dickie, whose one-liners throughout the show kept the audience on their toes. Valdini was spot-on as an overbearing Muriel. When she ran on stage everyone sat a little stiffer in their seat. Ellis’ work as Bingham was outstanding; he ultimately gets a prize even better than his club winning the golf tournament.
Chef DeJuan, who celebrated his birthday on gala night, created a delicious menu to complement the show. Guests chose an appetizer of either a spring mix house salad or creamy broccoli and cheddar soup. Options for the main dish include Chef DeJuan’s roasted prime rib, chicken divan, sweet tea-poached salmon and a corn, white bean and tomato pie. And if you have room for desert, heavenly coconut cake or lemon cream pie is a great way to top off the meal.
“A Fox on the Fairway” will be on stage at the Alhambra through June 10. Visit www.alhambrajax.com for tickets.
Photo courtesy Alhambra Theatre and Dining
Bingham (Timothy Ellis) and Pamela (Becky Baxter) are scene-stealers at Alhambra Theatre and Dining’s production of “A Fox on the Fairway.”
