PLAY REVIEW: 'Boeing Boeing' is funny funny

Robert, played by Harry Bouvy, explains the Lufthansa bag and women’s clothing to Gloria, dressed in red for TWA, played by Amanda Ryan Paige in “Boeing Boeing,”  a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

In case of emergency, the exits are on the either side and your seat cushion can be used as a flotation device.

And remember: When watching the new Mason Street Warehouse play “Boeing Boeing” at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, remain seated until the entire show is over because the plot twists and comedic turns will bounce you from laugh to laugh before landing.

The show, which opened Aug. 17, runs through Sept. 2. Times are 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; 7 p.m. Sunday and 2 p.m. on the final Sunday. Tickets range from $26 to $39.75.

For more information, visit sc4a.org.

Gretchen, dressed in yellow for Lufthansa, is played by Kayla Peabody.

The play about an architect juggling his three flight attendant fiancees in Paris in the 1960s flies at supersonic speed from the brink of chaos, through romantic turbulence to domestic bliss.

Bernard the architect, played by Sean Allan Krill, starts the day as a calm and calculating man who uses an airline timetable and the love of the number three — “Three is the dream,” he tells his old college friend Robert, played by Harry Bouvy, who is passing through Paris  — to balance relationships with flight attendants Gloria (dressed in red for TWA) played by Amanda Ryan Paige, Gabriella (dressed in blue for Alitalia) played by Kathryn Merry and Gretchen (dressed in yellow for Lufthansa) played by Kayla Peabody. The three-fiancee life has all the advantages of marriage without the hassle, he says — as long as the women never meet.

The trusted timetable breaks down, though, and all three women end up in Bernard’s apartment with his frustrated maid Berthe, played by Kate Young. A former flight attendant herself (from Air Scotland), Berthe spirals into frustration at balancing what food to serve each woman as they fly through the apartment.

The rainbow parade of stewardesses really takes off when Gretchen from Germany bursts on the scene and overwhelms the stage with her Teutonic traits. The dancing on the furniture signals the turbulence about to arrive.

Gloria from America turns on the jets when demonstrating the red-hot science of kissing to Wisconsin-born Robert, complete with sound effects, that boils love down to the only color missing from the stewardess stage — green.

Gabriella from Italy steadies the entire show in calming blue with her devotion to monogamy and love.

Bernard, played by Sean Allan Krill, starts to panic.

Krill does a great job playing a man who is descending into comic chaos — watch his face as the decor is constantly switched by a frantic Berthe to match the color of company. He is actually sweating when his world of women starts to unwind.

“I love to describe this show as ‘Frasier’ meets ‘Pan Am’ meets ‘Mad Men,’ ” Kurt Stamm, arts center artistic director and founder of Mason Street Warehouse, said in a press release previewing the show. “It’s one of the funniest plays I’ve seen in New York in the past 10 years, and we’re thrilled to present the West Michigan premier.”

“Boeing Boeing” is by Marc Camoletti; translated by Beverley Cross and Francis Evans; directed by Kathryn Markey; presented through special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc.

More pictures

Gretchen, dressed in yellow for Lufthansa, introduces herself in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16. Kayla Peabody plays the German love interest.

Robert, played by Harry Bouvy, left, and Bernard, played by Sean Allan Krill, try to keep a lid on the chaos in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

Gloria, played by Amanda Ryan Paige, heats up the stage with Robert, played by Harry Bouvy, in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

Bernard, played by Sean Allan Krill, and Robert, played by Harry Bouvy, discuss a crisis in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

Gabriella, played by Kathryn Merry, and Gretchen, dressed in yellow, played by Kayla Peabody, are two of three fiancees of Bernard, played by Sean Allan Krill, in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

The flight attendants in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, are, from left,  Gabriella (dressed in blue for Alitalia) played by Kathryn Merry, Gretchen (dressed in yellow for Lufthansa) played by Kayla Peabody, and Gloria (dressed in red for TWA) played by Amanda Ryan Paige.

Bernard, right, played by Sean Allan Krill, explains to his friend Robert, played by Harry Bouvy, how he keeps his three fiancees from finding out about each other in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

Gabriella (dressed in blue for Alitalia) played by Kathryn Merry, takes a seat in a Paris home in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

Housekeeper Berthe, played by Kate Young, is exhausted by the goings-on in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

Robert, played by Harry Bouvy, tries to keep a secret from Gabriella, played by Kathryn Merry, in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.

Bernard, played by Sean Allan Krill, realizes his plans are falling apart in “Boeing Boeing,” a play put on by Mason Street Warehouse at the Saugatuck Center for the Arts on Thursday, Aug. 16.