Very light comedies?

[Fantod]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 10:37pm

Sorry for starting a second thread today, but can you think of some examples of comedy plays that are light and frothy and not too serious?

[After Eight]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 11:05pm

The Moon Is Blue, Under the Yum-Yum Tree, Mary, Mary, Barefoot in the Park, Any Wednesday, The Star-Spangled Girl, Cactus Flower, Forty Carats are a few that come to mind.

[GoSmileLaughCryClap]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 11:08pm

There are dozens of light comedies that opened before the TV sitcom made the genre obsolete.

Everything by Jean Kerr. There's early Neil Simon and then Marc Camoletti's Boeing- Boeing among other of his plays that were successful around the world. Forty Carats and Sunday in New York satisfied the Wednesday matinee crowd who wanted to laugh away an afternoon.

Maybe the last light comedy that was a really big success was Same Time Next Year. There were some modest runs of shows like My Fat Friend, and Bernard Slade(Same Time Next Year) had a last modest hit with Romantic Comedy. That was 1979.

I think that everything since then that's a comedy was either elevated farce like Noises Off, or sharper edged comedy drama like ART. The plays of Alan Ayckbourn cannot in good conscience be considered light comedy, though some of his works play as such on the surface.

Lots of these were turned into movies that have been released streaming online or on DVD. Watch them to see if any might work for what you're looking for.

[GoSmileLaughCryClap]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 11:08pm

There are dozens of light comedies that opened before the TV sitcom made the genre obsolete.

Everything by Jean Kerr. There's early Neil Simon and then Marc Camoletti's Boeing- Boeing among other of his plays that were successful around the world. Forty Carats and Sunday in New York satisfied the Wednesday matinee crowd who wanted to laugh away an afternoon.

Maybe the last light comedy that was a really big success was Same Time Next Year. There were some modest runs of shows like My Fat Friend, and Bernard Slade(Same Time Next Year) had a last modest hit with Romantic Comedy. That was 1979.

I think that everything since then that's a comedy was either elevated farce like Noises Off, or sharper edged comedy drama like ART. The plays of Alan Ayckbourn cannot in good conscience be considered light comedy, though some of his works play as such on the surface.

Lots of these were turned into movies that have been released streaming online or on DVD. Watch them to see if any might work for what you're looking for.

[NoName3]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 11:16pm

GSLCC, it's interesting how many of the shows you mentioned were produced by Morty Gottlieb.

Also, Mary, Mary.

Fantod, your question is so broad, it might help if you give more information, for example, why you are asking. Are you looking for something for a community theater to present, for something to read, for film versions to check out, Broadway or beyond, era, etc.? What do you consider "very light"?

[Fantod]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 11:17pm

Thanks for the suggestions. I just finished reading Barefoot in the Park and was surprised by how delightful it was, so I'm interested in finding more texts like that to read.
Specifically I'm interested in shows from the 30's to the 60's because I like that kind of style for playwriting. Updated On: 10/8/14 at 11:17 PM

[GoSmileLaughCryClap]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 11:23pm

Yes NoName3,and he also produced Enter Laughing, which also fits the topic.

[NoName3]

Posted: 10/8/14 at 11:24pm

Fantod, in that case, GSLCC's suggestions are all excellent.

[brucebossa]

Posted: 10/9/14 at 10:05am

Don't forget the delightful NEVER TOO LATE by Arthur Sumner Long which ran just over 1,000 in the early 1960's. This, along with the others mentioned, were really a Broadway staple and, as was mentioned, faded like the dinosaurs when Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore and others provided their delights right in your own home. I remember not leaving the house the nights those TV shows aired. Even the movie business suffered on those nights.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 10/9/14 at 10:20am

Noel Coward Plays: Blithe Spirit, Private Lives, Present Laughter