‘Once In A Lifetime’ explores the death of vaudeville and the birth of motion pictures

Photo by Dean Lapin

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? VAUDEVILLE SUCCUMBS TO TALKIES IN LAKEWOOD PLAYHOUSE’S “ONCE IN A LIFETIME.” Pictured here: Gretchen Boyt as Florabel Leigh, Nicole Lockett as May Daniels and Danelle Jaeger as Phyllis Fontaine.

Before movies there was vaudeville, a stage show that consisted of a variety of specialty acts such as plays, dances, acrobatics and comedy skits. There is no clear history of when and how vaudeville came to be, but it roughly began in the early 1880s and proliferated until the 1930s when it faced growing competition from movies.

Lakewood Playhouse’s “Once In A Lifetime,” written by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart and directed by Marcus Walker, is about three friends – George Lewis (played by Blake R. York), May Daniels (Nicole Lockett) and Jerome “Jerry” Hyland (Lewis Gorman) – who are struggling vaudeville performers working in the age of the first “talkies” – the birth of motion pictures with sound. Realizing vaudeville’s popularity was dying, the friends travel to Hollywood looking for fame and fortune by opening a vocal school in order to be ahead of the “talkie” game by providing voice lessons for up-and-coming starlets. Of course, pretty much anything that could go wrong does, and through a weird turn of events, one of the friends is literally made a god of the [movie] industry.

Throughout “Once In A Lifetime” there are some side plots that play into the main story. The story is not just about the relationship between the three friends and their successes in Hollywood, but also about love and loss in Hollywood. In a way the play makes fun of the Hollywood game, showing the uglier side of the industry or, as May points out to Jerry, “becoming Hollywood.” There is also a great deal of quirky characters, some of my personal favorites being Helen Hobart (played by Dana Galagan), a highfalutin columnist who initially helps the trio, and Lawrence Vail (David Robertson), a Hollywood playwright who, for unspecified reasons, no one in the industry could remember his name (or that he even existed for that matter).

The play is two hours of non-stop fun and hilarity. The actors interact with the audience and do a wonderful job of transporting viewers back to a time when movies with sound really were a big deal. There is also a history lesson involved with a mention of the rise to fame of actor John Barrymore, grandfather of actress Drew Barrymore.

There is no part in the play that is not entertaining, including when the stage crew was changing sets. The play has a fantastic collection of music from the 1930s, adding to the overall feel of the time period. The stage is small and close, which makes the viewer feel more like a bystander experiencing beautiful Hollywood before his or her eyes, rather than an audience member. The best part is how the story ends on a somewhat cryptic cliffhanger. “Once In A Lifetime” is truly an once-in-a-lifetime experience.

An extra surprise occurred at the end of a performance on the opening weekend involving Gorman. There was a “special announcement” in which he called an audience member to the stage because it was her birthday. As it turned out, she is also his girlfriend and as a special present, he proposed to her on the spot…and yes, she did accept. So congratulations you two, and may you have a marriage that lasts the test of time.

“Once In A Lifetime” plays through June 21. Ticket prices range from $14-$22 with special discounts for seniors, military and anyone under the age of 25. Show times are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Disabled parking and seating available. Lakewood Playhouse is located at 5729 Lakewood Towne Center Blvd. For more information or to make reservations, call (253) 588-0042, send e-mail to or visit http://www.lakewoodplayhouse.org.

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