Word: farcial
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1950-1959
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...many of the recitatives, and the employment of an English translation that wavers between brassy colloquialism and comically stiff couplets. Along with the idiocies of the plot itself, they provided an enjoyable parody of the heroic style. It was difficult to tell at first whether the action was farcial by intent or accident ("Where did I get the nerve?" muses the soprano after telling off Xerxes), but as the melodramatic cliches become less widely spaced the audience turned partisan, hissing the villain with all its might. As is proper in a drama of love, war, and deception, there...
...farcial plot centers around a house in London during plague-time, transformed in its owner's absence to a headquarters for "casting figures, telling fortunes, news, selling of flies, and bawdry." The servant Face (James Stinson) and the Alchemist, Doctor Subtle, (Roger Moldovan) conspire with Doll-Common (Phyllis Ferguson) to dupe avaricious visitors who seek the gift of the philosopher's stone...
...former Hollywood bit-player and director of a musical entitled "Brigadoon," has done another one of his disturbing jobs of directing. What keeps "The Happy Time" from becoming a second "I Remember Mama"--a worthy goal--are Mr. Lewis' determined efforts at diverting even the touching scenes in a farcial direction. This gets howls from the audience and I should hope yelps from the Messrs. Fontaine and Taylor, if they give a damn about their joint creation...