REVIEW: New Century Theatre ,Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

New Century Theatre at Gateway City Arts, Holyoke

www.newcenturytheatre.org

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.

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.

Jar The Floor

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through August 6, 2016

by Konrad Rogowski

“Jar The Floor,” New Century Theatre’s latest production, takes on the universal themes of family values, shifting social and cultural morals, and the hopes and regrets of mothers and their daughters as they strive to resolve their sometimes rocky pasts, and to understand the shifting values that drive their divergent futures.

Author Cheryl West examines the ongoing struggles of five women whose lives span four generations, and each of whose relationships carry the burden of past and present family expectations, and their disillusionment with life’s unfulfilled and unshared promises. For Madear (Johnnie Mea) it is life at 90, with a failing memory of what life was. For her daughter Maydee (Shannon Lamb) it is a life to be lived to the fullest and fastest. For daughter Lola (Maggie Miller), it is living a life of professional propriety, and upward mobility. For daughter, Vennie (Toni Ann DeNoble) it is to be a free spirit and follow her dream wherever it leads. And as a non-family member, Raisa (Brianna Sloane) lives through a broken marriage, cancer, and what may come next for her.

At first, it seems that all these characters can do is to complain and to snipe at one another, firing off accusations of who failed whom, and why there is no understanding of why life’s promises fell short. But as the action progresses, there are unexpected alliances formed, and old secrets, hurts, and hopes are revealed. There is then the start of an understanding among these women that family and love can survive in sharing lives that we may not fully understand or agree with, but which are the lives of those for whom we care.

Time Stands Still

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 23, 2016

by Konrad Rogowski

For the four characters in New Century Theatre’s latest production, there are moments of truth and moments of decision when, indeed, “Time Stands Still.”

The debate at the beginning of the play as to whether a photojournalist is just an objective chronicler of what happens, or should become involved in the actions that they capture on film -- especially those of raw human suffering – sets the stage for what follows.

For Sarah and James, photographer and writer, respectively, it is the conflict of whether they return to the next battle front and risk more pain and suffering for one more story, or withdraw to a more conventional life in suburbia and marry. For Richard and Mandy, it is whether their sudden spring/fall romance is genuine and lasting, or just another convenient fling for both. Interspersed with these moments which stop the characters in their personal or professional tracks, are other moments of decision, as personalities clash.

The battle-stressed and scarred Sarah is pitted against the perky insights of the youthful and seemingly untested Mandy. Richard and James clash over Richard’s stalled writing career, and the weight of personal loyalty vs cold business decisions, and those who must make them. Add to the mix the discovery of infidelity, betrayal, and more than a few personal demons, which confound these four people and make their ability to move on with their lives truly wrenching experiences, but ones which will not go away and must be dealt with, for life to go on with any meaning or validity.

Director Nichole Ricciardi puts her cast – Kim Stauffer, Nathan Kaufman, Sam Rush, and Alana Young – through their paces and delivers a show which poses provocative questions, and some interesting, if not expected, answers.

Bakersfield Mist

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 9, 2016

By Konrad Rogowski

To pirate an old adage ... beauty, art, and value are each in the eyes of the beholder, and nowhere is that more true than in New Century Theatre’s lively production of Stephen Sachs' "Bakersfield Mist."

Ellen Barry and Richard McElvain play the two combatants on this field of clashing perceptions of that age-old debate over what is art? Maude Gutman, a salty tongued trailer park collector of anything 'art-sy' ( as demonstrated by her immense collection of dumpster diving acquisitions), claims to have found an undiscovered painting by Jackson Pollock. Lionel Percy, art historian and self-proclaimed "connoisseur," can't quite bring himself to declare the find the real thing, despite the evidence to the contrary. What follows is as artistic and entertaining debate/knife wielding scuffle as the art world has seen over what is either a four by four foot piece of someone's painting drop cloth, or the genius of one of art's greatest contemporary masters.

Like Pollock's work, the script provides lots to see and hear with the verbal jousting going from passionate and soaring dissertations on both sides, to crude and sometimes cruel diatribes lobbed like hand grenades. In the process, not only is the ethereal veneer of art clawed away, but that of the combatants as well, as their real life successes and failures, personal and professional, are exposed to the raw light cast by another's critical eye. In the end, the debate of what is art may not end up being what you think it might be. What is true, is that the artistry of the author, director and cast is unquestionably the real thing.

Yankee Tavern

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA 
www.newcenturytheatre.org 
through June 25, 2016

by R.E. Smith

There is no denying that Steven Dietz’s “Yankee Tavern” deals with topics and questions that are especially relevant to today's political climate. Set in New York City in 2006, this four character piece finds that the repercussions of 911 are still keenly felt, in both broad and subtle ways. It also posits that everybody has secrets, whether they're bartenders or governments. What “Tavern” doesn't have is a script that is quite as clever as it strives to be.

Back-stories are parceled out strictly for their “wow” factor, with intriguing bits thrown about and left unexplored. Motivations are often contradictory and muddled, existing not to deepen the mystery but because they make for easy plot propulsion. The young romantic leads of Adam and Janet are given so little genuine emotional interaction that when one character tells another “he really loved you,” someone in the audience whispered, “Did he really?”

The two other characters are better served in their opposite but equal authority roles. Ray, an old friend of Adam’s father has a paranoid explanation for everything. The mysterious Palmer also has specious information to impart but from behind the curtain itself. Between the two, just about every conceivable 911 conspiracy is aired. But because Ray also rants about the machinations of the wedding industry, Starbucks and the moon landing, his more reasoned arguments carry less weight.  But Michael Dell’Orto is an audience favorite with his addled but sentimental portrayal. As befits a possible black ops worker, John Kooi has better luck speaking with quiet authority due to his understated, contained demeanor.

While the rundown barroom setting is nicely realized in execution, it is laid out so literally that the blocking of the action is hamstrung. Too many lines are delivered up stage, backs turned, with long stretches of action taking place behind the bar or seated at a table.

“Yankee Tavern” certainly posits some unique theories and asks enough questions to get and keep the audience thinking throughout the evening. But the show is the summer theater equivalent of a quick thriller beach read. There's just enough going on to keep your interest, but as weighty as it wants to be, it is still a paperback.

Luna Gale

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 25, 2015

by Konrad Rogowski

New Century Theatre's production of "Luna Gale" is engaging because of a strong script, strong acting, and a title character, who the audience never actually gets to see.

The Rebecca Gilman play, directed by Gina Kaufmann, is a firestorm of planning and plotting by a group of adults, each with his or her own best intended solution, as to who should be the guardian of baby Luna Gale, the daughter of two young, inexperienced, and addicted parents. Enter the social worker, the grandmother, the pastor, and the child protection administrator, each with not only a plan to 'save' Luna, but each with an agenda that taints those best intentions, and raises the suspicions of the others vying for the infant.

The cast does a fine job making their characters credible as motivated, yet flawed, individuals who in some instances teeter on the edge of moral and/or ethical failure. Of particular note are the performances of Cate Damon and Sue Dziura as the social worker and grandmother, respectively. The action and plotting are quick, and nicely helped in their pace by Daniel D. Rist's multiple site set, that moves from office to home and on to a waiting room or nursery. "Luna Gale" is one of those plays that is worth seeing because it mandates that its audience think and evaluate, oftentimes in an uneasy manner. What really is best for baby Luna Gale?

The Little Foxes

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 11, 2015

by Konrad Rogowski

Lillian Hellman's "The Little Foxes" is a finely crafted tale of greed, deception and the suffocating social conventions of the American south at the turn of the last century. The play's storyline fellows the schemes of two small town families as they plot their way to grasp the golden ring dangled before them by an industrialist from the North. The man's decision to build a cotton mill in town is the key to the families' future.

The complications and plotting arise, because each of the three siblings -- Regina, Oscar and Ben -- must put up one-third of the finances to entice their benefactor to make the deal. And for Regina the whole plan hinges on additional and unforeseen (o the audience) circumstances. The crux of "Little Foxes" is the deal-making and workings among the siblings.

The cast does a credible job in retelling Hellman's all too familiar story of the back room deals and changeable alliances that the temptations of potential windfalls place before folks who think they have it all figured out, and have the upper hand. It is a tale that has been retold in too many newspaper headlines since the 1930's.

Stephanie Carlson, in particular, as Birdie, as the flighty, often times tipsy, and over talkative wife of Oscar, sets the show's tone, being a little too free with the truth about family secrets. While the cast does a credible job in retelling Hellman's all too familiar story of the back room deals and changeable alliances that the temptations of potential windfalls bring, a little harder definition of the plotting and character conflicts/chemistry would have made for a more impactful show.

Greg Trochlil's dramatic and elegant set design and Dawn McKay's costuming set the tone for this period-piece drama of fading fortunes and pots of gold at the rainbow's end.

The little foxes do just what little foxes should, they skulk about in the shadows, they plot, and they work to steal whatever they can, by whatever means are within their power.

Seminar

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through June 27, 2015

by Barbara Stroup

Four characters in search of success as fiction writers hire a writing guru, bond in various ways (not only literary), and occasionally discuss the meaning of art. “Seminar,” a well-paced play by seasoned playwright Theresa Rebeck, entertains audiences with some effective one-liners and a bit of predictability. This well-acted vehicle opens New Century Theatre’s 25th year, and was received with laughter and appreciation by a nearly full house at opening night.

Keith Langsdale brings a vituperative interpretation to his character of Leonard, the writing coach, embellishing the mean-spirited comments with appropriate physicality. Even when the audience learns its probable origins, the nastiness seems overdrawn. As his critiques assault each writer in turn, the blade becomes even sharper.

Myka Plunkett is engaging as Kate, the light-footed, preppy Bennington graduate and the first writer whose prose suffers Leonard’s attack. The lancing continues, until there is finally some hope that good art might exist among these writers. The surprise at the end comes from whose art “wins.” In the same scene, Kate is unnecessarily diminished. How Rebeck treats both female characters is a disappointment.

The use of a folk harp for sound, both live and recorded, enhances the production aurally, as did the use of multiple recorded speeches during the play’s only and most significant stage change. Often, the audience finds itself watching Langsdale’s back as he deliveres significant speeches, thanks either to direction or to set design. Somewhat buried in this script is some insights about creativity and the courage it takes, a theme worth addressing that makes the play worth watching.

Other Desert Cities

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through August 9, 2014

by Konrad Rogowski

The unearthing and ghoulish autopsy of old family secrets, deceptions and plots creates the conflict and intrigue of New Century Theatre's production of Jon Robin Baitz's "Other Desert Cities."

The premise of the play is pulled straight from the often times brutal reality of today's "tell it all" autobiographies, recounted, most often, by the children of the rich and famous; and so it is with the Wyeth family. Author Brooke Wyeth (Cate Damon) arrives on Christmas Eve at the home of her movie star/high powered political hob-nobbing parents (Richard McElvain and Carol Lambert) with a present that promises to blow the lid off of a well-kept family secret. She presents them with her "tell all" book that suggests what happened to drive her younger brother to both acts of mass violence and suicide. The author, who has her own take on the family dynamics which caused this situation, give other family members -- brother Trip (Sam Gillam) and aunt Silda (Ellen W. Kaplan) -- the chance to read and to deal with what has occurred.

Each of the actors creates characters dealing with a family imploding into a series of hateful accusations and counter accusations. The interesting and different facet of the play here is that each of these characters makes points that ring true in their facts and their hypothesis, only to be countered by the others' equally valid points, leaving the audience wondering just who's version of the truth is the one to believe. To compound the issue, Rand Foester has successfully directed his cast to express flawed people who deal with others, equally flawed. By play's end, a truth does come out. The audience discovers why Brooke finally takes the road she talks about to other desert cities.

Foester keeps the action tight, and the arguments crisp and ringing of reality. Daniel D. Rist's set design creates the scene...and like the conflicts played out, it is panoramic in scope, and appears, at least to the uninitiated, picture perfect.

Clybourne Park

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 26, 2014

by K.J. Rogowski

 

New Century Theatre's production of Bruce Norris' "Clybourne Park," is not a destination, it is a journey filled with hairpin turns, sudden stops, and jackrabbit starts.

The Act I crisis focuses around a house in Chicago in 1959 which is being vacated by Russ (Sam Rush) and his wife, Bev (Kathy McCafferty) because of the secret, painful memories that haunt them there. To compound their trauma, the couple is confronted by self-righteous/right thinking friends who accost them on how they can think of selling their home in exclusive Clybourne Park to a black family. Now, fast forward 50 years into Act II, and the same home is about to be demolished and replaced by a non-historical contemporary monstrosity by a white family looking to move into what is now a predominantly black neighborhood. At the same time, advocates for historical preservation petition to stop the new construction.

Norris' cleverly crafted script delves into the deeply personal beliefs, hurts, misconceptions, and prejudices of each of the characters as they sometimes naively, sometimes intentionally, try to explain, argue, joke and talk their way through issues and situations they never thought they would find themselves in. Each time the playwright brings these personal confrontations on race, sex, or secrets to a boiling point that can make the audience squirm more than just a little, he does a 180 degree turn, breaking that tension with a comic non-sequitur that lets everyone breathe a little easier. But, the concepts and issues are, for the most part, left unresolved, since it is not so much a matter of declaring a solution or a winner, as much as it is a matter of exposing them, and leaving them with the audience to live with and decide.

Under the direction of Ed Golden, the cast does a wonderful job as they first portray characters operating under the societal norms of 1959 middle America, and then switching into their 2009 mode of thought and action, as the decedents of the characters in Act I. The set design of Greg Trochlil cleverly transforms right before the viewers' eyes. Roles and arguments at Clybourne Park are fast paced; they reverse direction and twist down roads that one might not want to travel. Sometimes, "Clybourne Park" demands that the audience hold their (collective) breath, but it is a journey well worth taking.

The How And The Why

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 12, 2014

By K.J. Rogowski

Sarah Treem's "The How And The Why" is an ambitious two-person show currently playing at New Century Theatre. This production is, in part, an extensive exploration and debate of a proposed scientific theory on the evolutionary reason for menstruation, part professional crossroads on how to get ahead in the scientific community while leaving your coworker/lover behind, and part exploration of the deeply conflicted relationship between a mother and the daughter. By a twist of fate, some 28 years later, the daughter who was abandoned at birth ends up being her own mother's scientific collaborator. As if this was not enough to absorb, the play also includes the introduced, but never followed though on, plot element of one of the characters having stage three cancer.

Act I moves fairly well, although the ongoing antagonism between the two characters is never explained, only vaguely hinted at, which leaves audience members wondering exactly what is happening and why. However, much credit especially goes to the two actors, Lisa Abend and Suzanne Ankrum. At the opening night performance, a stir-related power outage put their stage in sheer darkness. The two never lost composure, but assured the audience "this happens all the time," getting a good round of applause. In a few minutes the lights were back on, they came back, restarted a few lines back from when the lights went out, and moved ahead unflustered and seamlessly.

The scientific and career conflicts debated in the Act I are detailed and well punctuated with the push and pull of conflicted characters. They move towards and away from one another as the action and arguments play out. Act II, however, takes an odd turn, with the prime characters meeting once again in "a dive bar." At this point, the production looses its drive. The main factors at play are the script's repetition of the debates and arguments from Act I with scientific theories and counter theories explained, argued, and re-argued, as are the personal conflicts. Director Sheila Siragusa's choice is to just sit the two at a table, in a room all alone, and there they stay for the majority of the act. In spite of lots of room to move, to push, and pull, there was little movement. Useful props were not used, such as the dartboard that, oddly, had no darts.

It may be that the script tries to take on and resolve too many complex issues, or something missing in the action, but the production leaves its audience, at least at the play's first performance, wondering about the how and why.

Laughter On The 23rd Floor

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through June 28, 2014

by K.J. Rogowski

New Century Theatre's production of Neil Simon's "Laughter On The 23rd Floor" is living, laughing tableau of the quick witted and frenetic lives of seven joker writers and their manic and unstable TV star boss, Max Prince, during the golden age of live television. The daily trials and tribulations of churning out yet another stellar script for live programming each week are only topped by their own personal frustrations and foibles.

Their world is confined to the 23rd floor, a classic 50's office, designed by Emily Singer, complete with water cooler, typewriters, and lots of danish. Lucas is the new kid who has to prove himself both as a comedy writer, and as a match for the razor-like wit of his six coworkers, who see every issue as pure comic fodder for their verbal barrages. Then there's Milt, whose daily wardrobe challenges rule his day; and Val the Russian, who takes speech lessons to learn to perfect his English "F-bombs." Ira is dying every day from something exotic, and Brian is certain that today is the day that some movie studio will discover his yet un-written script. Helen is just trying to get pregnant, and Kenny is the somewhat stable glue that holds them together.

Their story, is a bitter sweet one, because while having to deal with a neurotic comic genius boss, and their own personal problems, there looms the real life threat of the television network bosses who see the changing future of what the American viewing public wants.

The play rolls out like an actual variety show, with Lucas as host, addressing the audience like a TV M.C. Each character gets their own entrance and time to feature their unique brand of comedy. The troupe comes together in take-offs and skits, playing off each other like a pack of cartoon pinballs, cracking wise and working the laughs to top each other. Director Sam Rush takes full advantage of this good old, almost vaudeville like, machine gun humor, with characters jockeying to top one another. The laughs on both the 23rd floor, and in the audience, come fast and furious, making for and evening of pure fun.

Good People

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 20, 2013

by K.J. Rogowski

The world created by David Lindsay-Abaire in “Good People,” is populated by distinct, sometimes quirky, but definitely interesting characters, portrayed with a nice mix of humor, hope, and grit by a talented cast. The play is timely in its theme of average, every day folks, faced with the realities of living; some hand to mouth, with family commitments and crises, lay offs, job searches, lost loves, and the randomness of who gets ‘the breaks’ in life, and who does not.

“Good People” follows the journey of Margaret, played with well-paced energy and insight by Sara Whitcomb. After being fired from her minimum wage job in South Boston, Margaret does whatever necessary to provide food and shelter for herself and her developmentally challenged adult daughter. Supporting her in this effort is three rough cut, but genuine, friends: Steve, Dottie (who lives up to her name), and Jean. Each has a unique ‘Southy’ philosophy on how to grab that elusive brass ring. In this case, the brass ring’s name is Mike, an old boyfriend, now a doctor, and what contacts he might have to help Margaret land that desperately needed next job.

Just to make things even more interesting, and to start the real sparks flying, Abaire throws in questions about parent-hood, truth (as memory tells it), motivation, and the puzzle of how far someone goes to get what they want, or to distance themselves from the past.

The story has interesting twists, thoughtful observations, and is well peppered with adult/street language. All the while, “Good People” maintains its humor, a perspective on what really matters in life and a gutsy optimism that, while you may not always win, you win just enough, and life goes on.         

The Sunset Limited

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 6, 2013

by K.J. Rogowski

“The Sunset Limited” roars through the New Century Theatre with a compelling head of steam and a cargo of provocative questions, arguments, and passions.

Cormac McCarthy’s skillfully designed plot and characters, along with two actors who understand and deliver his contrasting messages make the evening. The playwright has crafted a trap, symbolically locking tthe duo in a room, struggling to discover why they are there. They, like their names and races: Black and White, set the tone. For these two men, that is the way they live their lives, each believing in their unique creed, unyielding, and engaged in a series intense debates of age old questions on the value of life, commitment to your fellow man, and what, if anything, there is after all this.

For one man, the answer is a drive to help those in need, living where the down trodden and social misfits dwell; and for the other, to simply end the suffering which he sees his life has become because of the ultimate futility of all man’s undertakings. For one it has been a life of crime, prison, and murder; and for the other, a life of privilege, education, and insights; but for both, lives that have brought them to have done things neither can dare to reveal.

The set, designed by Shawn Hill and Amy Putnam, captures the power of McCarthy’s plot, for as the show opens, the sound of "The Sunset Limited" bellows, lights pulsate, and the set rolls headlong towards the audience, screeching to a halt at the stage’s edge. And just like the two locked in the room on stage, the audience instantly knows that the Limited is headed dead on for them, just as McCarthy intends. This is a trip well worth taking.

Lend Me A Tenor

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through June 22, 2013

by Eric Johnson

Nothing says “let the summer theatre season begin” better than a good farce, set on a stage with six, count ‘em six, yes that’s right six, functioning doors beckoning to be flung open and slammed. Mistaken identities, characters in various stages of undress, compromising positions, and incidents of borderline insanity now have a perfect setting for the madness to begin. Add to this, a group of seasoned and talented actors and the stage is set for an evening of pure entertainment and lots of laughter.

The wonderfully detailed set design by Dan Rist immediately lets the observer know that it is a hotel suite, circa 1930s, complete with art deco designs on the doors.

Performances by the extremely talented cast, under the direction of Jack Neary, elicited almost non-stop laughter from the opening night audience, which is as it should be. This is a top-notch production of a very funny show.

Steve Brady and Brian Argotsinger, as Saunders and Max, have great chemistry and timing in the numerous scenes involving only this duo, almost channeling Abbott and Costello at one point in a hysterical rapid fire dialog sequence. Sandra Blaney, always a joy to see on stage, plays a marvelous mixture of innocence and wantonness as Maggie.

Tito and Maria are brilliantly portrayed by Sam Samuels and Lisa Abend. They step onto the stage with intensity and energy as a bickering couple, with an emphasis on heavy Italian accented English. Margaret Streeter, as Diana, is alluring and sexy, especially when she appears wrapped in a bath towel. The Bellhop, enthusiastically played by James Emery, is a great character and Emery knows it, bringing full commitment to his character’s mission to meet Tito. Julie Robbins also does a splendid job of bringing the supporting role of Julia to the forefront whenever she is on stage.    

“Lend Me a Tenor” is a fast paced, laugh out loud production well worth seeing. So, let the summer theatre season begin!

The Quality of Life

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through August 4, 2012

By K.J. Rogowski

Jane Anderson’s “The Quality of Life,” playing at the New Century Theatre is a production that pulls out all the stops, and takes on the topic of death, both recent and impending, with forthrightness, wit and humanity.

The script introduces the thoughts, emotions, and philosophies of four individuals, two couples and old friends, whose views on death are as divergent as possible. One couple has lost a daughter to a senseless crime, murder. The other is facing a terminal illness and the plans they have devised to deal with it. As their stories are revealed, so are their stances -- be they emotional, religious, legal, or just common sense/practical. Arguments are fought, alliances are made and broken, and friendships and marriages teeter not only on the brink of their losses, but of impending dissolution.

Dinah and Bill, played by Laurie Dawn and Sam Rush, are the practical mid-Western, church going visitors. Jeannette and Neil,acted by Cate Damon and David Mason, are their free spirited, free thinking West Coast friends, who are dealing with Neil’s terminal condition, and a devastating fire that has just destroyed their home. Their culture and lifestyle conflicts alone are a strain on their meeting, but as the painful layers of each couple’s suffering and style of coping surface, anger and indignation build, and other secrets are revealed.

Set against the skeletal remains of Neil and Jeannette’s burnt out home, this play hits hot button after hot button, for the characters and the audience alike, and what seems to be the answer to the pain and loss now, is soon upended by an unexpected plot twist. “The Quality of Life” makes for a quick paced, challenging and rewarding evening.

"Auld Lang Syne”

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

Through July 21, 2012

by Dave Chivers

With "Auld Lang Syne,” New Century Theatre co-founder Jack Neary has written a witty, engaging, thoughtful play that provides for a delightful evening of theatre.

The play receives a workmanlike performance from its two actors, Anne Scurria as the solidly Catholic, middle class Mary and Barry Press as Joe LeCedra a two-bit mobster with hopes of becoming something more. Before being brought together on New Years' Eve for a purpose that is slowly revealed, their only previous connection in life had been as elementary schoolmates some fifty years before.

The play begins with a rat-a-tat opening that seems right out of the best of Abbott and Costello, with silly wordplay and misunderstood double meanings. But under Neary's sure writing this eventually evolves into something more - an unexpected, but not out of place, exploration of questions such as the relative merits of Heaven and Hell, the existence of God, and what makes life worth living - or not.

Throughout most of the first Act the two actors provide a finely tuned madcap performance that is engaging and fun. Barry Press is especially convincing as Joe, a guy who keeps messing up his life, but keeps trying to make better despite himself.

Near the end of the First Act, the pace begins to lag a bit. As the Second Act opens, the play takes on a darker, more reflective tone. The script remains strong, but the acting to pull off such mood change in more extended monologues falls a bit flat. Attempts to recapture the energy of the first act didn't quite come together in this opening performance, and while the play ends with a satisfying, thoughtful conclusion, it lacks a bit of vitality that it might well find as the run goes on.

The set and staging is well done, with the effects of off-stage comings and goings of cars and trucks (crucial to the plot) very convincing.

This is only the second staging "Auld Lang Syne" but given the strength of the writing, it should be a play that finds itself produced regularly in the future.

Red

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through July 7, 2012

by Kait Rankins

Director Sam Rush has put together a masterpiece in New Century Theatre's production of John Logan's "Red."

Buzz Roddy stars as abstract expressionist Mark Rothko, presenting him as an aging lion - aggressive, set in his views of what art should mean and who is fit to consume it. He has been commissioned by the Four Seasons to create a series of murals for the dining room. For $35,000, it is the ultimate sellout, but he stubbornly attempts to justify the choice to take the work while he holes himself up in his studio with his paintings and classical music.

Justin Fuller plays his assistant Ken, starting as a nervous and over-eager painter who comes to work for Rothko, mixing paints and stretching canvases. As he both learns from and clashes with Rothko, he blossoms into a grown man and finds his strength of character.

The play deals with and debates the nature of art as Rothko and his assistant interact and work in the studio over the course of two years. With paint splashed on almost every worn-in surface, there is no hint that setk/costume designer Claire DeLiso created this space for a play: Rothko's basement studio full of carefully-controlled lighting (by Dan Rist) is a living, breathing environment that seems too intimate for a theatrical set. The cigarettes and food are real, the sink has a working faucet. Red paint sloshes in buckets, drips from brushes, and covers the actors, who move through the studio like they truly work as artists there. The tactile realism of the production is what makes it a successful one, breaking up Rothko's lengthy intellectual speeches and causing the script to come off as honest rather than pretentious.

The master/apprentice plot of "Red" is not surprising. The basic themes are common, familiar, and predictable, but the beautiful writing, immersive environment, and nuanced actors are what set it apart. Roddy and Fuller has the audience invested as their relationship develops and unfolds. Fuller's Ken could have been overshadowed by Roddy's more aggressive Rothko, but Fuller doesn't back down. Each actor knows how to give as well as take, maintaining a balance that keeps the audience transfixed. At 89-minutes without intermission, the play moves quickly and seamlessly through highs and lows, screaming and silence, the red and black that are thematic throughout.

"Red" is tour de force not to be missed.

Circle Mirror Transformation

New Century Theatre, Northampton, MA

www.newcenturytheatre.org

through June 23, 2012

by K.J. Rogowski

New Century Theatre’s production of Annie Baker’s “Circle Mirror Transformation” is a play that, for a number of reasons, leaves you hoping for/wanting more. It is incomplete due to both the script and the presentation.

The play itself is a series of vignettes about average folks taking a six week acting class. The difficulty for the audience is…too many vignettes, which start in a direction, developing a thought or character, and then trail off. Others are just very short, mundane exchanges, and when punctuated by the many blackouts needed to make scene changes, leave audience members trying to remember how this play is intended to hold together, and hold interest. The impact is that it is then difficult to warm up to, or indeed really care about the characters. Yes, they each have problems and issues, and the cast does a credible job, and there are a few brief moments of tension, and a few laughs, but the production does not rise to the accolades given it for either humor or self-discovery.

The circle concept is reflected in the curved walls, and the circle floor design, and there are a set of floor to ceiling mirror doors, but they do not play a role in moving the action. The final scene transitions from an acting exercise in the last class at the local community center to some time in the future, as two of the characters meet and talk of where they are now and what’s happened. But as presented, they are the same people. They have moved on, but there has been no transformation.

Superior Donuts

New Century Theatre, Smith College, Northampton, MA
www.newcenturytheatre.org
through August 6th
by Jennifer Curran

About ten minutes into the play a distinct and not unwelcome feeling took over the room. It was almost as if the audience was watching a taping of a classic sitcom rather than a play. The structure of "Superior Donuts," a dark comedy, is in fact very similar to sitcoms of old and it is used brilliantly by playwright, Tracy Letts.

Elements of light-hearted joy, race relations, and the generational gap are all here for examination. The setting is a donut shop in Chicago's Uptown district. The shop has seen better days and as a sign of the times, is struggling to exist since Starbucks has opened across the street. The set design by Daniel Rist is authentic and simplistic.

"Donuts" is hysterically funny. Comedic timing here is pitch perfect. Barry M. Press' Max Tarasov is a constant comic relief, but behind the funny is something else entirely.

From the center of the story comes Arthur Przybyszewski, played with grace and gentleness by Rand Foerster. Foerster's detached and often befuddled Arthur is instantly likable and completely fallible. His low key approach could have easily been forgettable while contending with the high energy antics of Johnnie McQuarley's Franco Wicks. Foerster has the difficult job of grounding the play and giving McQuarley someone to spar with, which he did superbly. McQuarely bounds, jumps, jokes and laughs. Franco only sees the good and the possibilities in all things while his new boss is left desperately trying to bring his new hire back down to earth.

The two new friends are forced into a reversal of roles that has all the potential of becoming the stuff of greeting cards and after-school special sappiness. The deft direction by Steve Brady avoids that, and in the final moments of "Donuts" the audience is given an honest moment of great courage on the part of both characters. Courage is what this play is about. It's about having the courage to get back up no matter hard you've fallen.