By Eric Marchese | Special to the NB Indy

Noël Coward ’ s comedy “ Blithe Spirit ” is typically played as a frivolous romp and at a generally superficial level .

Not at Newport Theatre Arts Center , where director Matt Koutroulis strikes gold by digging beneath the surface of the famed 1941 play .

Yes , laughs still abound , and Coward ’ s trademark wit and brilliance shine through nearly every scene and line of dialogue , but Koutroulis and company show how the script expertly intertwines humor with reality . The characters are taken seriously , and that adds welcome new layers to the fun .

In his latest work , novelist Charles Condomine ( Jason Cook ) plans to explore the world of the occult , so he and wife Ruth ( Jessica Plotin ) invite famed medium Madame Arcati ( Judy Jones ) to a dinner party at their posh home along with their friends , the Bradfords ( Scott Keister and Julianne Bancroft ).

While Madame Arcati is a “ professional ” spiritualist who makes a living conducting seances and investigating paranormal occurrences , Charles jokingly tells his wife and

friends he ’ ll depict the medium in his new book as “ a professional charlatan .”

Perhaps somewhat predictably , Madame Arcati ( with help from her otherworldly contact Daphne ) causes the spirit of Charles ’ s deceased first wife Elvira ( Victoria Leigh Serra ) to rematerialize in ectoplasmic form in the Condomine home .

Charles is at first convinced Elvira is a hallucination and her presence an aberration – and that Ruth is “ stolid ” and “ obtuse ” for not believing him or

The cast of “ Blithe Spirit .” Photo by Sarah Whitwell

being more sympathetic .

During the 1920s and ’ 30s , spiritualism was an absolute mania , and Coward deftly capitalizes on this with an after-dinner séance as the play ’ s focal point . We get complete ( rather than partial ) darkness , with the actors bathed in bluish-green lighting of the strange events . The scene is aptly eerie versus being silly and jokey on one hand or , on the other , leaden .

Coward generates the right amount and level of comic chaos as Elvira ,

seen and heard only by Charles , communicates with him alone , frustrating Ruth – and causing her to misinterpret words spoken to Elvira . It ’ s an odd , supernaturally funny way to depict a scenario Coward later terms “ astral bigamy ,”

“ Blithe Spirit ” starts out as a drawing room comedy of manners , then veers toward the supernatural , and finally plumbs the complexities of marriage vis à vis how a man relates to wives former and current . It thus proves itself a comedic commentary on human nature ( but with supernatural overtones ). Every cast member thankfully lacks the mannered performing style prevalent in the ’ 30s and early ’ 40s – a credit to Koutroulis and his actors , and Cook , Plotin and Serra superbly play out Coward ’ s concept of a physicalastral ménage à trois .

Cook and Plotin positively sparkle as Charles and Ruth , who are ultra-rich , and ultra-polished in the best Coward tradition – much like Elyot and Amanda from his “ Private Lives .”

As opposed to an overly stuffy and plastic or phony persona , Cook ’ s

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