“Seascape” at 2nd Story

By Richard Pacheco

            Edward Albee who just died in September 2016 was one of America’s greatest playwrights and this play shows off Albee at his best with deft dialogue a balance between probing sincerity and absurdist flair. The play captured the 1975  Pulitzer Prize in drama. It covers familiar ground for Albee, that of interpersonal relationships and communication.

            In “Seascape” Albee probes the changes and challenges that face us in life. Charlie and Nancy face their retirement with some trepidation and concern. They have earned their retirement. In their gambit to the beach they encounter two fantastical sea creatures with which they interact. The seas creatures want more than they have in their undersea domain, crave so much more than they now have. There are moments that funny and then also serious.

            Charlie and Nancy discuss their married life, the ups and downs that go with it. There was a time when Charlie was depressed and Nancy almost divorced him. They both long for something more than they have, somehow feeling they were cheated by life and are missing out on things. As with just about all of Albee’s plays, this is about lives overflowing with regrets over things not done, roads not taken, people who spend their lives living as if they are never going to day only to realize so much has slipped through their fingers.

            Artist director Ed Shea who directed this, is Charlie who longs for endless rest and pleads with his wife to leave him alone. Yet when he remembers about when he was a child and used to weight himself down with rocks to sit underwater and enjoy the vista he say there, he perks up. The result is hysterical full of frustrated outbursts. Shea delivers an impeccable performance. He is bold, sincere and masterfully funny when he needs to be.

            Charles La Frond is Leslie, the male sea creature, who is wary and concerned out the encounter with this land folk. He is curious about life on land and away from the sea. He wants to know more yet is fearful. La Frond is solid in the role, the right mixture of bravado and caution with often funny results.

            Valerie Westgate is the female seas creature, Sarah. She too longs for more, feeling life has passed her by and she feels that going on land will somehow help alleviate that. She too is somewhat cautious but longs to know more. She is delightful in the role, sincere and funny as she struggles through this new adventure.

            Susan Bowen Powers is Charlie’s wife, Nancy. Nancy is tired of life to this point and at one point considered divorcing her husband Charlie. She encourages him to reconnect with his childhood happiness. In the end she is resentful that the “good life” they lived has limited her. She craves new experiences while Charlie wants only to rest. This is the weakest performance in the production. At times she seems too bland and unemotional, a bit distant and not connected. She does have some moments with seems seem to hit the mark but they are few and far between.

            Ed Shea directs with confidence and finesse and makes solid use of the in the round format.

It runs through Feb. 5 at the theatre, located at 28 Market St., Warren. Tickets are $25 and $35. For more information, go to 2ndstorytheatre.com or call (401) 247-4200.

“The Mountaintop” at Trinity Rep

By Richard Pacheco

            The Katori Hall play about the last evening of Martin Luther King’s life at Trinity arrives right on time to honor the man who changed the face of America. It has him holed up in a hotel room with an irreverent angel masquerading as a maid. The resulting meeting is both funny and at times touching. It gets off to a slow start but gains momentum and power.

            The first act is mostly King bantering with the angel, as they smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol as they chat and flirt with each other. At first she is merely the maid who brings him some alcohol and cigarettes but it evolves into her revealing her true name and position, not Camae the maid but the angel of death. She is there to prepare him for what is to come tomorrow, his death.

            The play veers from robust comedy to emotionally moving segments which reveal character and ad depth. It shifts from the naturalistic beginning with the emphasis of Camae as a maid into the more imaginative aspects of the spiritual. Leaving behind the mundane world of room 306 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis where King spent his last night live.

        

    Joe Wilson is Martin Luther King is a vivid, riveting performance that remains with you. He is vulnerable and powerful, by twists and turns between a man with a dream and a man with all too visible flaws like his weakness for women. He has many fine moments in this play and takes advantage of them all. At one point when he discovers that Camae is an angel is powerful as he tries to grasp what it means and why she is there with him. He manages to get her to let him talk to God on the phone, after Camae calls God’s cell phone, which leaves him perplexed, not knowing what it is. King discovers that God is a black woman, it totally surprises and confuses him and it is hilarious and touching at the same time.

            Mia Ellis is Camae a woman who is sultry and seductive as well as smart and savvy. She is part enigma, part temptation. When she reveals parts of her life before becoming the angel of death is at times comic at other times moving. Ellis is poised with sexual energy and sass, wild and ready to roar. She has an air to her that is delightful, a mixture of sober reality and inviting dreaminess.

            The chemistry between the two of them is winning, hot and serious simultaneously.

            Kent Gash directs with a sure touch that is vibrant and invigorating. He brings them together with dexterity and conviction and it shows throughout.

            This is a dynamic production filled with treasures, gems of performances that reverberate challenge and excite. While there are flaws in the play, there are also many good things and it is the breathtaking performances that make it all worth it. Hall manages to find a man with flaws and doubts getting ready to face his earthly end with humor and courage.

"The Mountaintop" Trinity Repertory Company, 201 Washington St., Providence. Through Feb. 12, Tickets: $25 to $71, Info: (401) 351-4242, trinityrep.com

“The Children’s Hour” at the Gamm Theatre

By Richard Pacheco

            Lillian Hellman was one of the most significant women playwrights in American History. This work, “The Children’s Hour,”  proved to be quite scandalous in 1934 when it was first produced, but seems tame and somewhat dated in contemporary times. It is a drama set in an all-girls boarding school run by two women, Karen Wright and Martha Dobie. An angry student, Mary Tilford, runs away from the school and to avoid being sent back she tells her grandmother that the two headmistresses are having a lesbian affair. The accusation proceeds to gather momentum and bring with it hoards of tragic implications and consequences

each step growing more serious and disastrous for all concerned, particularly the two women. While the underlying issues are the effects of lies and ever increasing devastation it brings without any supporting evidence, there is still the overtone of lesbianism that makes it seem dated. At the same time the rampant intolerance seems most appropriate to today’s headlines and political intolerance, which is so widespread today to absurd proportions,

            The Gamm production suffers from some performances that are not on the mark and also the directing at times misses getting the full emotional impact from the play

            Madeleine Lambert is Karen Wright, one of the owners of the school. She is engaged and this accusation has an impact on that as well as her livelihood. She delivers a poised performance, honest and with emotional impact.

            Karen Carpenter is Martha Dobie, the other school owner. She seems to take a while to connect with her business partner, too distant and unaffected by almost anything until the end. Yet there the impact is dulled due to a lack of build up emotionally.

            Grace Viveiros is Mary an extremely difficult child with a penchant for herself out of trouble, willing to go to extremes, no matter what the cost or devastation. She is manipulative, devious and unscrupulous to the endth degree. She delivers and intense and powerful performance of sheer evil and manipulation.

            Casey Seymour Kim as the somewhat distracted and offbeat aunt Lily is at times too spastic and seems more just out of control ridiculous and a caricature.

            Wendy Overly as Mrs. Tilford a wealthy and powerful woman who loves to meddle to suit her tastes and beliefs. She enjoys showing of her influence and power. Overly is not exactly on target, seeming a bit distant and emotionally flat.

            Benjamin Grills as Dr. Cardin is somewhat stiff and at times unconvincing. His crying later in the play is too false and unbelievable.

            Director Rachel Walshe cannot quite seem to get the play to deliver the kind of emotional impact it should with the horrific climax. It seems stilted, falling short of the emotional mark.

            "The Children's Hour" runs through Feb. 12 at the Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre, 172 Exchange St., Pawtucket. Tickets are $44-$52. Call (401) 723-4266, or visit gammtheatre.org.

“The Gin Game” at Theatre One

By Richard Pacheco

D. L. Coburn’s Pulitzer Prize winning “The Gin Game” currently at Theatre One in Middleboro is bright, funny, well-acted and energetic full of convincing passion and humor. Weller Martin and Fonsia Dorsey, two elderly residents at a nursing home for senior citizens, strike up an acquaintance. Neither seems to have any other friends, and they start to enjoy each other's company. Weller offers to teach Fonsia how to play gin rummy, and they begin playing a series of games that Fonsia always wins. Weller's inability to win a single hand becomes increasingly frustrating to him, while Fonsia becomes increasingly confident.
             While playing their games of gin, they engage in lengthy conversations about their families and their lives in the outside world. Gradually, each conversation becomes a battle, much like the ongoing gin games, as each player tries to expose the other's weaknesses, to belittle the other's life, and to humiliate the other thoroughly.
            A two-person play can be very challenging. It demands a lot of the actors including a simpatico and connection that is front and center. You have that here with two very accomplished actors moving through the play with ease and astute comic timing.
            Omer Courcy is Weller, a man confident in his ability to play bridge although not that thrilled with other aspects of his life. Due to his divorce he has lost touch with his eon. Bad business dealings left a bad taste in his mouth and he is upset to be in a nursing home with only one way out. He craves company and some kind of connection, some human contact and emotional richness that is lacking in his life. But he would be reluctant to mention it. It makes him ornery when it comes to playing gin.  And it infuriates him with the novice Fonsia whips one him game after another pushing the limits on beginner’s luck to the breaking point.
            Courcy is a delight, full of sass and impeccable comic timing. He can deftly gets laughs from his expression when warranted. His gestures and movement as well as line delivery is a delight.  He does cranky with dexterity and finesse. He knows how to get the best out of it so does so.
            Kathy Bourne is his match as the somewhat timid Fonsia. Fonsia is burdened by a life that did not go the way she would have liked. These various disappointments make her liberal with her story to put it mildly.  She likes to appear the victim and the hands of a most unfortunate fate that continually grinds her down. She yearns to teach out for something, someone to connect with and somehow diminish her unhappiness and despair. Weller is it. Yet she is somewhat frightened by his temper and how seriously he takes playing gin. There is an attraction revulsion going on here that grows more intense and layered as they play more and more gin.
            Bourne is a delight. She is full of energy and the right mix of timidity where needed. She can rise up and match Courcy’s rage or cower in self-defense as required. She too has excellent comic timing and is a good foil for Courcy. She is sincere in her portrayal with great poise and dexterity.
            Director Peg Holzmer keeps her talented cast gliding along with purpose and dexterity. She deftly directs their tricky matter of their card playing while speaking their lines with impressive eye for detail and conviction and truthfulness. The card games do not even appear slightly false. She keeps the timing impeccable with the laughs coming fast and furious.
            It is a solid and enjoyable production from beginning to end with some surprises and expertly acted.
            It will be presented again Friday and Saturday13,14,20,21 at 7:30 and Sunday Matinees Jan 15 & 22 at 2pm. Tix’s $20 Gen Admission and Students and Seniors $18. Cash Only at the door. Doors open ½ hour prior to show. They collect food donations at all our performances for Middleboro COA Senior Pantry. Call (774)213 5193

Alley Theatre, 133 Center Street, Middleboro, MA

“Never the Sinner” at Your Theatre

By Richard Pacheco

            The production is sparkled by driven and exciting performances and keen direction. The play by John Logan (​"​The Last Ship" and Tony Award for "Red" on Broadway) explores a complex and twisted relationship between two young men in search of passion, intellect, and the perfect crime.

             Two lovers believed they were supermen and decided to commit a murder just to prove they were. It backfires as they botch all kinds of things which come back to haunt them as the police find the body swiftly and also ever increasing evidence against them. The play is a compelling look at their dark personalities, their evil natures and how it developed to the point of murder and its aftermath while believing they were absolved of all responsibilities for their actions.

            Ian Vincent is Nathan Leopold, highly intelligent, totally awkward socially and inept in personal interactions except with Loeb. He is a law student and also studies ornithology as well in Chicago. He is shy and morally distant, downright evil and impeccably intellectual. Most people are nothing more than ants to him and he is aloof and condescending to them. He seems to care more about all variety of birds than people. Even interacting with Loeb’s girlfriend, rude, crude and dismissive of her with a determination and icy fierceness that is disturbing. Vincent is excellent as the aloof and darkly motivated, coolly condescending Leopold. He aptly captures his bumbling shyness with great skill and finesse. He also displays his dark, icy evil with dexterity and polish.

            Michael Eckenreiter is the suave, personable Loeb with his winning smile and slick demeanor, adored by ladies and fascinated crowds right until through the trial. He is like a matinee idol obsessed with his mother, devastated as much as he can be with she does not appear at trial and seems to disown him. A dapper dresser with a playboy demeanor he is also totally cold and emotionless to all but his lover Leopold. Intelligent and socially distant, he is the impulse behind this murder experiment. He knows how to manipulate, as does Leopold. Eckenreiter is on the mark as this sleek sociopath, managing to be charming and chilling simultaneously. He reveals his underlying viciousness wrapped perfectly in a polished exterior of charm and finesse delivering a chilling portrayal.

            Also on hand for the sentencing sessions, as the trial has been bypassed by legendary attorney Clarence Darrow and his adversary state’s attorney Robert Crowe.

            Crowe is a determined and dedicated prosecutor with a strong moral compulsion in his nature. He sees these two as the epitome of evil deserving of the worst possible punishment, hanging. He is prepared to do whatever is legally necessary to accomplish this. His strong oral as well as legal compass keeps him on target with relentless determination. Taylor Cormier handles all this with expertise and sincerity. He is utterly convincing in his passion to get these two evil men hung. His final monologue pleading for the death penalty is poised and vividly emotional, pleading with sincerity and conviction.

            His adversary is the legendary Clarence Darrow. Darrow is a lifelong opponent of capital punishment. Darrow also took part in the Scopes Monkey trial. He considered himself a country lawyer but his wit and courtroom finesse proved beyond any doubt that he was not a country bumpkin, but rather a skilled litigator with a sharp intellect and peerless wit. He went from city law to more union oriented until bribery charges forced him into criminal law.  John Softcheck has the poise and presence necessary to pull of the role. His Darrow is amiable, smart and an incisive with filled with confidence and bravado. Softcheck delivers with energy and conviction. His final speech pleading for the boys not to be hanged is rich with nuance and honesty.

            There are many other supporting actors in the play who play several roles each. Mark P. Fuller, Stephanie Parquette, Lee Bonia and Dennis Smith all play both reporters and other roles. They add some depth and atmosphere to the play with solid, convincing performances that are energetic and skilled.

            Ed Maguire directs it all with zest and frankness. He evokes the best from his actors and offers vivid relationships between them, convincing ones. The synergy he gets from Leopold and Loeb is impressive both sincere and chilling simultaneously.

            This is a splendid production that resonates with skill and depth, echoing a conflict between the restraint of law and the rabid deluded insanity of the killers who thought they were aloof and above the law, somehow super human not bound by what binds the rest of us. It is well worth seeing for not only the vivid and articulate performances but for the realms of morality it plumbs.

            The shows run Thursdays through Saturdays January 12, 13, 14 and 19, 20, 21 at 8 p.m. with 2:30 p.m. matinees on Sundays, January 15 and 22. Performances are held in the wheelchair accessible Your Theatre, Inc. Playhouse, 136 Rivet St., New Bedford, at St. Martin's Episcopal Church Complex.