Arlington’s Synetic Theater combines acrobatics and Charlie Chaplin-esque comedy into a unique medley of improv and excitement, with The Servant of Two Masters, the company’s new take on the famed 18th-century comedy.
Originally by Italian playwright Carlo Goldoni, the show centers around Beatrice, a young woman who’s traveled to Venice in search of her lover, Florindo, who killed her brother, Federigo, while he was defending her honor. Disguised as Federigo, Beatrice searches for the father of Federigo’s betrothed, looking to collect her dowry money to help Florindo escape.
Vato Tsikurishvili, the show’s director, stars as Truffaldino, the harlequin servant of both Beatrice and Florindo. Hijinks ensue as Truffaldino runs around Venice trying to please all of the demands of his two masters.
While the show was originally scheduled for the 2019-2020 season, it was pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Vato Tsikurishvili, the show’s director, has made sure Synetic’s rendition of the famous comedy has adapted to current times, coming out of a pandemic. While always funny, the show takes a more emotional turn than it might have if Synetic had put it on two years ago.
“It grew, and changed, and adapted to the times, the cast we have now, and to current events. What I felt people would appreciate to experience now versus then changed,” Tsikurishvili says.
A typical Synetic performance rehearses for approximately eight weeks. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions and snow that took place around rehearsal time, this performance only had two and a half weeks of rehearsal, unheard of for a full-scale production.
With elaborate sets that seem reminiscent of a pantomime, emotionally cutting moments, and acrobatic stage-fighting and dancing (including a crowd-winning Dirty Dancing move during the final number), you’d never know the show was under-rehearsed. Tsikurishvili credits this to his team of actors.
“So it was, get direction out, and then trust the actors. Trust the team that you have. Their hearts are in for this. This is what they do, they do art. So that was a very easy step to take,” he says.
For his unique adaptation of this famous comedy, Tsikurishvili combined the influences of both Charlie Chaplin, with his slapstick yet intelligent style, and Slava Polunin, the famed Russian clown, bringing the carnival culture of Eastern Europe to an American stage.
While all of the actors in the show give their all to the performance, one highlight in particular is Nutsa Tediashvili as Beatrice. While she leads the ensemble perfectly in both the acrobatic numbers and the comedic moments, Tediashvili particularly soars during the emotional moments of the play, striking a balance between mourning her brother and loving the man who killed him.
Tsikurishvili also shines as Truffaldino, making the audience laugh out loud with his physical comedy, especially in the most famous set-piece of the play, when Truffaldino runs back and forth between Beatrice and Florindo to please both of them, bringing them food and wine as they ring their little bells. Tsikurishvili plays the comedy effortlessly, able to both make the audience laugh and feel second-hand exhaustion, as he runs across the stage and back no less than 20 times.
Then there’s Maryam Najafzada, who plays Smeraldina, a fellow servant, who is absolutely smitten with Truffaldino. The relationship between the two will melt your heart, especially during a particularly warm moment the two share taking laundry down from a clothesline. When Smeraldina turns to the audience towards the end of the performance asking if the two should kiss, the audience will no doubt cheer with a resounding, “Yes!”
Though a play with harlequin-esque makeup and hilarious plot twists might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of emotional realism, the raw emotions from the show, whether they be love or grief, shine through from beginning to end. As the characters’ makeup wears off towards the end of the performance and we see their true selves, we start to feel as if we’ve seen a glimpse of our true selves in the performance.
“As the makeup starts to decay towards the end, that rawness really fires off, and the story becomes a little more visceral, it becomes a little more real. And I think it culminates very, very well,” Tsikurishvili says.
For a colorful and innovative show that will make you laugh out loud while it breaks your heart, check out The Servant of Two Masters, running at Synetic Theater from April 6 to May 1. Tickets start at $20.
Feature image courtesy Synetic Theater
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