The Merry Wives of Windsor Review from LA Weekly, October 9, 1999 The Merry Wives of Windsor Deborah Klugman, LA Weekly     Written in two weeks - or so traditional rumor goes - at the behest of Elizabeth II, this Shakespearean farce is indeed a merry one, and in the hands of talented co-directors Jane Macfie and Patrick Lawlor a true delight. Its pivotal character, Falstaff (Jerry Neill), is a smug, greedy, corpulent lecheŽ whose larcenous scheme to bed and swindle two wealthy women (Cara Barker and Vickers Wilson,) boomerangs after they discover his plan and devise an elaborate comical vengeance. The machinations of several lust-struck males in pursuit of a desirable young girl (Alice L. Chen) generate further amusing burlesque.

The Merry Wives of Windsor

Upstate New York circa 1900 furnishes the quaint backdrop [setting?] for a winning ensemble. Barker and Wilson deliver two wonderfully giddy and gleeful performances as the savvy wives, but this critic's grand prize for laughs per minute goes to Larry Ohlson's [portrayal of a] seethingly jealous husband - a flawless parody of the fool who manufactures his own problems. Bottom line kudos, however, belong to Macfie and Lawlor - gifted directorial hands who have finessed [Shakespearean] language, slapstick and nuance into quality entertainment. Pasadena Shakespeare Company, Pasadena Plaza, Suite 296, Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru Nov. 21 (626) 564-8564.