The Glass Menagerie

‘The Glass Menagerie’ Review – Xenia Area Community Theater – Chemistry by Candlelight

January 12, 2020 By Russell Florence, Jr.

Sparks both dramatic and dysfunctional fly profoundly in Tennessee Williams’ landmark 1945 semi-autobiographical memory play The Glass Menagerie. However, in the event those sparks lack pizzazz, two significant safety nets typically make up for any shortcomings, which defines Xenia Area Community Theater’s presentation.

(left to right) Amy Taint (Amanda Wingfield), Kristin Curby (Laura Wingfield) and Ryan Hester (Tom Wingfield) in Xenia Area Community Theater’s production of The Glass Menagerie. (Photo by Mike Taint)

Ben Evory as Jim O’Connor in Xenia Area Community Theater’s production of The Glass Menagerie. (Photo by Mike Taint)

As the centerpieces of Act 2 under the direction of Mike Taint, Kristin Curby and Ben Evory, both delivering XACT debuts, are worth the wait as Laura Wingfield and Jim O’Connor, also known as the Gentleman Caller. The moment a hearty dinner concludes in the dark and Jim is asked to spend some quality time with hopelessly shy Laura by candlelight, this emotionally mild production suddenly finds its footing, enjoyably transitioning into the heartwarming and heartbreaking reunion Williams intended. In high school, the physically challenged Laura pined for All-American Jim, but her deep insecurities and his overwhelming popularity kept them from becoming more than social acquaintances. As if in a dream, after years of wondering what became of Jim, Laura finally has him all to herself, but the unexpected momentousness of the occasion and the hard truth Jim reveals about his relationship status is ultimately too much for her fragile soul to bear.

Kristin Curby as Laura Wingfield in Xenia Area Community Theater’s production of The Glass Menagerie. (Photo by Mike Taint)

Curby, soft-spoken, believably frazzled and nicely costumed by Dee Berdine and Debra Zweber, wonderfully conveys Laura’s expressive arc from reticence (delightfully taking only a pinch of Jim’s chewing gum when offered) to acceptance (energetically recalling Jim’s glory days via her trusty yearbook and lovingly giving him a souvenir from her meaningful glass menagerie). Evory, charismatic, vibrant and sensitive, equally appeals with sharp authenticity recognizing Jim’s delicate balance of attempting to be Laura’s life coach while acknowledging the pitfalls, desires and uncertainty fueling his own topsy-turvy trajectory. In particular, Evory’s effortlessness is an extension of his knack for characterization as a recent graduate of Wright State University’s BFA film program. In fact, his excellent, humorous short film Slushie was featured on opening night of the Dayton LGBT Film Festival last fall.

As for Laura’s overbearing mother Amanda and incredibly disillusioned brother Tom, the central duo driving this landmark drama set in 1937 St. Louis, Amy Taint and Ryan Hester tussle admirably but a fundamental disconnect exists. In his XACT debut, Hester, a notably outstanding George Gibbs in Springfield Stageworks’ Our Town, certainly fares better, giving credence to Jim’s volcanic behavior and overt frustration when pushed to the breaking point and splendidly delivering his quietly reflective and poetic monologues on the deck of the SS Pennwar six years later with great maturity. Conversely, Taint inhabits Amanda with gentle, passive and comedic sensibilities, off-kilter choices diminishing the play’s electricity and Amanda’s inherently dynamic matriarchal strengths. She only rises to an impressive level of domineering authority when Amanda defiantly throws Tom out of her house and her life.

Nevertheless, thanks primarily to Mike Taint’s effective projections and delicately staging one of the greatest scenes in American playwrighting with affection and surprise bolstered by Curby and Evory’s chemistry, this Menagerie still manages to shine.

The Glass Menagerie continues through January 19 at Xenia Area Community Theater, 45 E. Second St., Xenia. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. Act One: 75 minutes; Act Two: 75 minutes. Tickets are $17. For tickets or more information, call (937) 372-0516 or visit xeniaact.org.

‘The Glass Menagerie’ Review – Human Race Theatre Company – Dissecting Memory

February 9, 2016 By Russell Florence, Jr.

Dysfunction reigns and happiness is fleeting within Tennessee Williams’1945 semi-autobiographical drama “The Glass Menagerie,” a powerhouse of a play currently receiving a lovely, attractively designed presentation courtesy of the Human Race Theatre Company at the Loft Theatre.

Drew Vidal and Claire Kennedy. Photo courtesy Scott J. Kimmins.

Set in a St. Louis apartment in the 1930s, this potent saga of a disillusioned, regretful Southern belle stuck in the past and her two emotionally scarred children meandering in the present never fails to entice. In stark contrast to Williams’ equally marvelous “A Streetcar Named Desire,” a masterpiece primarily fueled by anger, violence and betrayal, “Glass Menagerie” mesmerizes with a gentler magnetism propelled by remarkable poetry and a powerfully relatable familial sting. As Tom Wingfield (Williams’ alter ego) looks back on his troubled life, specifically the squabbles with his overbearing mother Amanda, the overprotection given to his insecure sister Laura, and the pain of being abandoned by his father, he conjures memories which are entirely one-sided and purposefully askew. He opts for “truth in the pleasant disguise of illusion” because it is his most viable means of acceptance. It’s natural to suspect Tom was born to experience more than what St. Louis could offer which makes his ultimate decision to leave his family behind far from outrageous. Even so, he forever remains a prisoner of regret with no escape.
Pensively directed by Greg Hellems, the production is superbly led by Race resident artist Scott Hunt as the frustrated, soul-searching Tom. In one of his finest performances, Hunt, in his first non-musical role on the Loft stage, conveys a tremendous mastery of the text (and its beauty) along with a grounded sense of confinement and yearning which makes the character’s struggles so palpable. Race resident artist Jennifer Joplin, seen as the daughter of a political power couple in “Other Desert Cities” two seasons ago, is too young to be credible as an aging matriarch, but delivers nonetheless in terms of vigor, motherly concern and Southern charm. I would have preferred her portrayal to be more abrasively domineering (which perhaps contributes to the low-wattage electricity of her Act 1 exchanges with Hunt), but at the same rate, it’s refreshing to see this play tilt in Tom’s direction. The luminously expressive Claire Kennedy, a Wright State University alumna with numerous Race credits, dazzles as the introverted, awkward Laura whose passion for her glass menagerie is her only solace. Whether awaiting an autograph or opening a door, Kennedy fills every moment with a captivating, beguiling delicacy. In his Race debut, handsome Drew Vidal (recalling John Krasinksi of “The Office”) terrifically embodies the affable, smooth-talking Jim O’Connor (a.k.a. The Gentleman Caller), a high school alum of Tom and Laura who stops by the Wingfields for dinner only to awaken feelings within Laura she thought would never spring to life beyond her yearbook. Due to Kennedy and Vidal’s exceptional chemistry, Laura and Jim’s Act 2 heart-to-heart conversation by candlelight effortlessly evolves into the splendid centerpiece Williams intended.

Scott Hunt, Jennifer Joplin and Claire Kennedy The Glass Menagerie. Photo courtesy of Scott J. Kimmins.

Hellems’ first-rate artistic team, contributing authenticity and an evocative allure, includes scenic designer Eric Barker, costumer Ayn Kaethchen Wood, lighting designer John Rensel, composer/sound designer Jay Brunner, properties master Heather Powell, and dialect coach Deborah Thomas.
Surprisingly, “Glass Menagerie” marks the first time a play by Williams has been presented in the Race’s nearly 30-year history. Here’s hoping it will not be the last.

“The Glass Menagerie” continues through Feb. 21 in the Loft Theatre of the Metropolitan Arts Center, 126 N. Main St., Dayton. Performances are 8 p.m. Feb. 10-13, Feb. 18-20; 2 p.m. Feb. 14 and 21; and 7 p.m. Feb. 16. Act One: 70 minutes; Act Two: 70 minutes. Tickets are $35-$50 for adults, $32-$46 for seniors, and $17.50-$25 for students. Select side-area seats available for $25 at all performances. For tickets or more information, call (937) 228-3630 or visit www.humanracetheatre.org or ticketcenterstage.com. Group sales: contact Betty Gould at (937) 461-8295 or [email protected]

Human Race Presents A Classic: The Glass Menagerie

January 28, 2016 By Dayton Most Metro

The Human Race begins the second half of its 29th season with Tennessee William’s first great masterpiece, The Glass Menagerie. Memories come alive and love becomes desperate in this shimmering drama of a family on the edge. Tom struggles to make it in a modern day world while his reclusive sister hides amongst the small glistening crystalline creatures she collects. Their mother holds tight to a fantasy of Southern gentility and the belief that a certain gentleman caller will be the answer to their problems. With an edge as sharp as broken glass, it’s a story that cuts deep into the longing of human hearts. The production at The Human Race’s downtown Dayton home at The Loft Theatre is directed by Greg Hellems and features actors Scott Hunt, Jennifer Joplin, Claire Kennedy and Drew Vidal.

Director Greg Hellems revealed his unique and exciting vision of the play:

Even before it opened on Broadway in 1945, The Glass Menagerie had proved itself to be a powerhouse hit with audiences and critics, quickly earning the then unknown Tennessee (real name “Thomas”) Williams national recognition as a voice of his generation. Considered to be semi-autobiographical in nature, the play takes elements of Williams’ own early life—growing up in St. Louis with an overprotective Southern mother and an emotionally troubled sister, toiling in a shoe factory, a difficult relationship with his father—and pours them into the tortured soul of its protagonist and narrator, “Tom Wingfield.” Described by the playwright as a “memory play,” The Glass Menagerie was unusual for its time, the script was filled with considerable and detailed stage directions from Williams to ensure its presentation in the manner he envisioned, the story is filled with intentional symbolism and its dialogue highly poetic and lyrical in nature. Even after Williams went on to win two Pulitzer Prizes for A Streetcar Named Desire and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, his The Glass Menagerie was heralded as a defining work that changed the American Theatre and opened up new ways of writing dramatic literature.

In defining his vision of The Glass Menagerie for The Human Race, director Greg Hellems focused on Williams’ early life and how he sought to purge himself of guilt and regret, just as his doppelganger on stage, “Tom,” must do. “I see the theatre as Tom’s purgatory,” explains Hellems, “in which he must make his nightly confession to explain his actions and to justify his decision to abandon his mother and his disabled sister.” The story in the play is Tom’s memory, but it’s telling has an unintended consequence. “The ghosts of Tom’s illusion—his mother, his sister, his co-worker, Jim—respond with vitality and life, and won’t succumb to Tom’s conscious desire to win us over,” Hellems says. “Once Tom steps into his memory, it is no longer under his control, and he must face the reality of his past decision.”
The four-member cast of The Human Race’s production features two of the company’s Resident Artists, native Daytonian Scott Hunt (Rent and Les Misérables on Broadway, Big River and Shenandoah with HRTC) as the troubled son, “Tom,” and Cincinnati’s Jennifer Joplin (HRTC’s Miracle on South Division Street, Other Desert Cities and God of Carnage) as his mother, “Amanda,” as well as Wright State University graduate Claire Kennedy (HRTC’s Lend Me a Tenor, Twelfth Night, Romeo and Juliet) as sister “Laura” and Ball State University assistant professor Drew Vidal (The Three Musketeers at Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Red Light Winter at Shafer Street Playhouse) as the gentleman caller, “Jim.”

Earlham College professor Eric Barker’s (The Repertory of St. Louis, CATCO, Richmond Shakespeare Festival) set combines a stylistic setting with real world furnishings in his first turn as scenic designer for The Human Race. Local artist/designer Ayn Kaethchen Wood (The Zoot Theatre Company, Yellow Springs Kids Playhouse, HRTC’s Under a Red Moon) serves as costume designer. Resident Artist John Rensel returns to set the mood as lighting designer. Sound designer Jay Brunner (HRTC’s The Santaland Diaries, The Full Monty, Family Shots) has created an original musical score to accompany the action onstage. Kay Carver is the production stage manager. The show’s producer is Human Race Associate Artistic Director Tara Lail.
Tickets for the preview performance of The Glass Menagerie on February 4 start at $35 for adults, $32 for seniors and $17.50 for students. For all performances February 5 – 21, single ticket prices start at $40 for adults, $37 for seniors and $20 for students. Prices vary depending on the day of the week and seating location. Group discounts are available for parties of 10 or more. The Human Race is offering a pair of discount ticket opportunities. Side-area seats are available at all performances for $25 each, on sale two weeks prior to performance. The Sunday, February 7 7:00 pm performance is “Sawbuck Sunday”, when any available seat can be purchased in person for just $10 at The Loft Theatre box office two hours prior to the show. Discounts are subject to availability and some restrictions apply.

All performances are at the Metropolitan Art Center’s Loft Theatre, located at 126 North Main Street in downtown Dayton, Ohio. Show times for The Glass Menagerie are 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday through Saturday evenings. Performances on Sunday and Tuesday evenings begin at 7:00 pm and at 2:00 pm on Sunday matinees.

Tickets and performance information on The Glass Menagerie are available at www.humanracetheatre.org or by calling Ticket Center Stage at (937) 228-3630, and at the Schuster Center box office.