Vegas wedding comedy delivers laughs at the Reston Community Center
Heather Regan Photography
Nothing screams kitschy Americana like a quickie Las Vegas wedding. The hilarious and heartfelt production of “Four Weddings and an Elvis” by the Reston Community Players captures that vibe perfectly. The play focuses on four days in the life of Sandy (Lori Brooks), who owns and runs a little wedding chapel as she helps couples plan their big day. While not every client’s motives are true, most want to find love in Sin City.
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The play is structured like a sitcom, where each wedding runs about half an hour. It is a great way to showcase Sandy’s character growth as the play progresses. When we meet her, she is jaded, sarcastic, and frustrated in her fourth marriage to the same man who also happens to be the chapel’s minister. His character is so unreliable that the audience never meets him, though his absence propels parts of the story forward.
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The first bride and groom are marrying to exact revenge on their exes who have dumped them to marry each other. Bev, who has moved past her pain, and Stan, who has not, are rushing down the aisle to show up their former spouses whose wedding is set to happen the next day. We also meet John, an Elvis impersonator from the wedding chapel next door. He sings and gyrates his way through the couple’s nuptials, which are being broadcast to an audience of one, Stan’s ex-wife.
Wedding number two is all about letting go of the past. Bryce and Vanessa are a pair of aging stars who are rolling the dice for a comeback. We are also introduced to Lou, a down-on-his-luck former Elvis impersonator who has aged out of the role.
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The laughter really ramps up after intermission when Marvin (Tyler Cook) arrives. He is a former Eagle Scout and current postal worker whose family disapproves of his fiancé, Fiona (Kathy Ohlhaber). They are star-crossed lovers who just might make it if they can get past Fist, Fiona’s ex, who unexpectedly shows up to stop their wedding. Their love story causes Sandy to examine her own relationships.
The show’s final wedding brings everyone back to Sandy’s little chapel a year and a half later. The afternoon is filled with arguments, reconciliations, and surprises.
The play ultimately champions true love and marriage. Playwright, Nancy Frick, hatched the idea to set the play in a Las Vegas wedding chapel from her own life. Frick was married at the Little Chapel of the West in 1999. She thought a similar setting would be fun. Director Kimberly Leone has a similar connection to the play.
“I married the man of my dreams in a drive-thru chapel in Vegas more than 20 years ago, and I have the Polaroid wedding photo to prove it,” shared Leone in her director’s note. Her husband and son have both acted with RCP in past performances.
Leone pulled double duty on this production as she is also the show’s set designer. Her team created a brilliant set that mixes the chapel’s interior and exterior, allowing them to combine Harlequin-style romance with the garishness of Vegas. Inside the chapel is a mix of pastel pinks and hearts, with stained glass Elvis windows. Outside, there are classic neon signs, including the iconic “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, Nevada” sign.
Ultimately, “Four Weddings and an Elvis” is about second chances, hope, and a hunka-hunka burning love. It is the perfect confection to get one in the mood for Valentine’s Day. The show runs through this weekend at The CenterStage inside the Reston Community Center Hunters Woods. There are evening performances on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, with a matinee on February 2.