“To Thine Own Self Be True…”
The NW Premiere of this production is written by Richard
Greenberg and directed by Donald Horn.
It is playing at their space in The Sanctuary, 1785 NE Sandy Blvd.,
through March 31st. (Free
parking to the West of the building.)
For more information, go to their site, www.trianglepro.org or call 503-239-5919.
This above sentiment is uttered by a duplicitous character
in “Hamlet.” In essence, what you see is
not always what you get. A person can be of two natures, perhaps, or
more. And one of the Bard’s most famous
speeches, “All the world’s a stage…” the person espousing those lines is a very
morose character saying, perhaps, out of a weed-patch, sometimes a blossom
flowers.
Greenberg’s characters in “Three Days of Rain” are,
likewise, all over the map in terms of who they really are and what really
happened, as in this play, too. True, we
are, indeed, many different personas to many different people but you assume
that somewhere the real you exists…or should we assume even that?!
The play is simply staged, only two benches, but that works,
as the story is all over the map in time and space and back again. Also, the author’s words and narrative are
not so apt to get lost in the trappings of fancy settings. And so, we are placed in a netherworld,
created by the characters, to explore, perhaps, the meaning of Truth and
Reality.
I can’t tell you much of the story because a great deal of
it is up to an audience to discover, as it deals with, as mentioned, what is
actual and not. It seems that Anna
(Michelle Maida) is in a NYC hospital, possibly on her last legs, and is being
visited by her son, Seth (Alex Fuchs), who is an obit writer for a newspaper,
and her somewhat, estranged daughter, Abby (Deanna Wells), who lives in
CA. Their mother seems prone to
hallucinations of imagined or actual events in her life and with such
meanderings, are subject to scrutiny as to fact or fiction.
The major story of her shadows is of a brief, affair with a
gentleman called Phil (Twig Webster), who seems to be good for her. And like many budding relationships, they
wish to unburden themselves to the other, in order to show sincerity, of buried
secrets, akin to what her kids are discovering about their mother. But Phil has a secret, too, that may be much
more dangerous. Through these exchanges,
long hidden feelings are exposed, but we are still left with who are we really
when all the veils have been whisked away?
Who is that Great and Powerful person behind the curtain?!
You will have to see it for yourself to discover the
answers…and even then, there might be even more questions. Horn is at his best when digging into
characters, and thus, the actors’ psyches, as he does here. And he has a very smart cast to work
with. They are all in top form and keep
you guessing, as it should be with any mystery.
All the actors fit their roles to a tee, and it is good to see Webster
again on the stage after such a long absence.
Obvious to see that he still has the “right stuff” and hope to see more
of him onstage in the future.
I recommend this show.
If you do choose to see it, please tell them Dennis sent you.
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