Fancy Meeting you Again

"Fancy Meeting You Again" is a very funny play, undoubtedly the funniest to come to Boston so far this season. It is the work of a master craftsman, George S. Kaufman (and his wife, Leueen MacGrath), and throughout the three acts the deft touches of a successful playwright are evident.

There is no plot complication; if the play had to rely simply on its plot, it would probably fall flat on its face. It is rather a situation, simply stated, and then exploited. Briefly it deals with a woman who has met the man she is in love with before--in 15 other lives. When she finally sees him in her present life, he remembers none of their former relationship and is unprepared for her sudden declaration of love. He doesn't believe in reincarnation, but she tries to lure him into marriage nonetheless.

With this exposition out of the way in the first act, the authors are able to hit it from every angle. They go back into her former life twice, once to a stone cave and later to a Roman bordello. The dialogue is witty, and the characters are almost perfect: a confused critic as the lover, a comic secretary, a Helen Hokinson-like committee woman, a stuffy judge, and a refugee from The Cocktail Party. They are all played to the hilt.

The production can be criticized for a few scattered slow moments, some of which combine to hold up the first act. These, however, are quite infrequent, and they may well disappear as the current run lengthens.

In the lead role, co-author MacGrath is good, although not up to the high standards of the rest of the cast. It seemed to me that she used a bit more restraint than her roll called for. Without displaying aloofness for a calm, understanding interpretation, she misses the other extreme by not appearing so distressed as she might be when confronted with people who doubt her tale of reincarnation.

Albert Johnson has designed a simple studio set with two revolving sections which seemed fairly unimaginative although it allowed the quick scene changes the production required. A large plaster statue by some unidentified artist appeared suitably obnoxious.

After several long bouts with supposed comedies earlier this season, Boston should welcome Mr. Kaufman back with a great deal of pleasure.