New Century Theatre at Gateway City Arts, Holyoke
through June 23, 2019
by Beverly Dane
There’s a show at Gateway City Arts in Holyoke that should
have everyone in the Valley clamoring for tickets. Edward Albee’s “Who’s Afraid
of Virginia Woolf?” regularly makes the “top 10” list of every theatre
critic—but to see it performed so well and hear Albee’s outrageous turn of a
phrase in an intimate setting by consummate professionals—well, that’s just icing
on the cake. Cate Damon, Sam Rush, Robbie Simpson, and Alexandra O’Halloran
masterfully create the four iconic characters in New Century’s current
production and it will have audiences leaving the theatre saying “wow!”
Director Keith Langsdale masterfully moves his actors around
the small stage and creates an environment so fraught with tension and
heartbreak that audible gasps could be heard throughout the theatre. The
characters, Martha, George, Nick, and Honey move like animals, ready to pounce at
any moment, and ready to lie down and purr a moment later. The pacing of the
production is exquisite, and each of the four actors create such believable
characters it’s easy to find yourself drawn in, concerned about them and hoping
for a happy ending—even if you know the outcome of this American classic.
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| Cast photos by Frank Aronson |
For those uninitiated to Albee’s masterpiece, the plot
centers around George and Martha, a married couple who live on or near a
University campus where Martha’s father is President. They taunt and tease each
other, sometimes lovingly, and sometimes with deadly terror. After a faculty
party one night, Martha invites Nick, a new professor, and Honey, his wife, for
a nightcap. What follows is a multi-layered exploration of how human beings are
seduced by truth and illusion to create their own codependency. The two
couples, one older, the other younger, but equally deluded by desire and
tradition, drink too much, disclose too much, and their respective lives begin
to unravel. Albee understands that humor is palliative when pain and this
outstanding production mines the humor but never deviates from Albee’s
essential truth—we always hurt the ones we love, sometimes, savagely.
While leaving the theatre, one patron was overheard talking
to his wife, and said, “You’d have to go to New York to see a production this
good.” Kudos to New Century Theatre and this outstanding cast and production
team. “Virginia Woolf” has been produced in many many versions, but this is the
one to make an effort to see. It’s a winner.