Real life husband and wife Richard Ooms and Claudia Wilkins portray the married proprietors of this shabby boarding house, and not surprisingly, they're quite believable as an old married couple. Stephen Cartmell is particularly effective as the depressed, haggard, mysterious resident Stanley. He's hiding out in this little seaside town, from what we never learn. But it has turned him into a skittish, angry, frightful man. Stephen dives into the role whole-heartedly, and somehow engenders sympathy for this mess of a man who just wants to be left alone.
Mr. Goldberg, one of the two nefarious men who show up to claim Stanley, is played by Tony Papenfuss, aka "my brother Daryl" from Newhart (he's returned home from L.A. to continue his career on Twin Cities stages, how did I not know that?). Mr. Goldberg is deliciously evil and up to no good, as you can tell from his slicked back hair and mustache. His companion, Mr. McCann (Martin Ruben), is the muscle of the organization. The sensitive Irishman is nervous until they actually start doing the job. The two are a great comedy team with rapid-fire dialogue, especially as they're questioning Stanley. Not surprising that the interrogation ends in screaming! Rounding out the cast is Katie Guentzel as Lulu, who seems much too pretty and normal to be hanging out with this crowd. But she obviously has a story of her own, which we never really learn, that attracts her to these misfits.
The dingy and unkempt boarding house comes to life in the precise and detailed little diorama that is the stage at the Jungle Theater. As is common at the Jungle, the director is also the set designer, in this case Joel Sass, which always seems to create a cohesive vision for the story. It's so lifelike, with dust and dirt on the surfaces, that I wouldn't want to set foot in that room! But I did enjoy peering into it for two and a half bewildering, engrossing, entertaining hours.
