French oddities displayed in ‘To Fool the Eye’

Brian Manzullo

A three-day love affair turned into a tragedy when a French prince’s love died suddenly, leaving him depressed and suicidal.

The University Theater production of “To Fool the Eye” is about the prince’s troubles and his aunt’s attempts to break him out of his stupor.

The play begins its week-long run tonight at 7: 30 p.m. in Moore Hall’s Bush Theatre.

The prince’s eccentric aunt – a wealthy duchess who frequently talks to her dead husband – tries to keep him from committing suicide by bringing an entire town to her countryside estate to recreate the three days her nephew and his lover spent together.

She bought the cafe where the pair ate and the benches where they sat, and brought in several odd characters from the town.

She hires a Parisian hat maker, Amanda, to play the role of the prince’s dead love, though the woman does not know what she is getting into, said Jill Taft-Kaufman, play director and communication and dramatic arts professor.

“The story unfolds as the obsessive young man and the poor, practical hat maker meet and carry out the reenactment,” she said.

“To Fool an Eye” is filled with French oddities, including mustaches, absurd accents and a set that is reminiscent of “Alice in Wonderland” to represent the duchesses imagination.

“It’s extremely silly, filled with silly, ridiculous characters,” Taft-Kaufman said.

The production was written by famous French playwright Jean Anouilh and was adapted by an American playwright.

“A contemporary audience would appreciate the silliness,” Taft-Kaufman said. “And we live such serious lives, it’s a good escape from that.”

The actors and actresses had the help of a dialect coach to learn French accents.

“Most people can do British accents, but French accents are more challenging for Americans,” Taft-Kaufman said.

St. Clair Shores senior Bob Pantalone, who plays an ice cream vendor, said the characters all have different accents.

“Some of them are ‘Pink Panther, Peter Sellers’ accents,” Pantalone said. “Others have more normal accents.”

Pantalone said he watched all sorts of French movies to prepare for his role.

“It’s a nice date movie,” Pantalone said. “Everyone’s a sucker for a love story. Bring your girlfriend.”

“To Fool an Eye” plays in Moore Hall’s Bush Theatre Wednesday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $5 for students and $7 for the general public and are available at the Central Box Office located in the Bovee University Center.

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