A lowbrow-highbrow mashup isn’t the worst idea, granted, but here it translates to “Shout til it’s funny.” The posh English accents are so high-pitched (not to mention questionable) that the production could star Alvin, Simon and Theodore. And one of its biggest gags is an extended fart sound effect that would send Noel Coward sprinting for a gin bottle.
Good farce relies on secrets being kept, and complications, lies, and absurdity being added to the mix until the center cannot hold. “The Cottage” on Broadway lacks much of this.