SCRC in the News
About SCRC's Production of Take Up the Song ... Print E-mail

The Island Packet, Friday, April 23, 2004, by Louise Lewis

Drama, verse mesh in theater's 'Song'

Ann Foskett bears a marked resemblance to Lauren Bacall. Tall, stately, and slim, she has clear, unhurried diction and an air of elegance that complement her poetry readings.

She appeared at South Carolina Repertory Company in a brief run of "Take Up The Song," a celebration of the life and work of Edna St Vincent Millay that she co-authored with the late Ramona Barth. Local actor Pat Haskell played the role of biographer and commentator, taking the audience on a chronological journey through Millay's life and works.

The two women sat in an elegant, yet comfortable parlor of early 20th century decor. Surrounded by books, paintings and bric-a-brac, they wore velvet and silk gowns and sipped from crystal martini glasses as they explored the vivid personality behind Millay's poetry.

Foskett became Millay through her lines of poetry. Beginning with a duet entrance of "Renascence," Millay's first great poem, her entire script was based on verses by the esteemed poet.

"The Buck in the Snow" reflects Millay, the animal lover, who identified with the hunted rather than the hunter. Nature runs throughout the verses, particularly the wild Maine coastline where she grew up.

Music, women's rights, motherhood and death all are recurring themes in Millay's poetry. She combined all of these themes in "The Harp-Weaver," the title poem of the book that won her a Pulitzer Prize for poetry.

The two actors shifted easily between information and verse -- so easily that it was sometimes difficult to discern where one ended and the other began.

Foskett reacted to Haskell's information as Millay herself might, reflecting agreement, amusement or irritation as the situation required. Haskell, on the other hand, sat quietly and attentively during Foskett's readings, not calling attention to herself.

The hour-long production ended with the command to "Take Up The Song," a line most closely associated with Millay but not her own -- poet John Greenleaf Whittier penned it in 1867 as part of a hymn text.

The performance was followed with the audience having an opportunity to ask Haskell and Foskett questions.

South Carolina Repertory Company's next season will begin in the fall.

Also see Edna St. Vincent Millay Well Versed
 
About SCRC's Production of Collected Stories ... Print E-mail

The Island Packet, Friday, March 26, 2004, by Louise Lewis

'Collected Stories' tells a tale of two artists

"Collected Stories" is a contemporary and provocative play by playwright Donald Margulies. It's the kind of story that might direct you into extended thought about the two characters and their relationship, or it easily could become the subject of lively late-night discussions with friends. Nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, the 1997 play explores the universal and ever-changing roles of mentor and student.

South Carolina Repertory Company's current production of this intriguing drama features insightful and sympathetic performances by actors Barbara Farrar and Gillian Watson.

The show also benefits from strong and solid direction by Pat Haskell and Tom Evans, a lavish and meticulous set by Evans, Haskell's provocative background music and stylish, flattering costumes, also by Haskell.

Watson is cast as Lisa Morrison. She first appears as an ambitious young graduate student, seeking guidance and wisdom of Farrar's Ruth Steiner in advancing her own career as a writer. A former student of co-director Tom Evans, Watson is making her local stage debut. Both brilliant and beautiful, she blossoms through the six-year span of the play from eager, insecure student into a successful, published author. Her changing relationship with Steiner through these years gently unfolds with the touch of a true artist.

Farrar is a stage veteran who is well-known locally for her appearances in other company productions, including "W;t," "Last Lists of My Mad Mother" and "On Golden Pond."

In this production, Farrar plays the part of Steiner, an older, rather cranky professor who also is a renowned author of short stories. Dry, droll delivery and distinctive mannerisms punctuate Farrar's performance as she moves through the years. From hearty, mature academic to sickly, failing senior, her face and body reflect the passing years with startling accuracy.

Each scene reflects both the passage of time and evolutionary stages in the relationship. Watson's Lisa grows from the callow young student into Steiner's assistant, then into a colleague and finally an adversary. Feeling that she has exhausted her Waspish, Princetonian roots on her short stories, Morrison has based her first novel, "Miriam's Book," on Steiner's untold personal story -- the story of a young Jewish writer in New York City, complete with tales of youthful passion that Steiner told her in confidence, never intending them to become public property.

Margulies admittedly was inspired by similar real life situations, specifically the David Leavitt/Stephen Spender controversy. He leaves the ending unresolved, and it is difficult to pass judgment since he has portrayed both women with warmth and sympathy. Morrison's novel is full of love and warmth, but Steiner angrily calls her a hitchhiker, claiming that she "... appropriated my life."
 
About SCRC's Production of Collected Stories ... Print E-mail

The Island Packet, Friday, March 12, 2004, by Gail Westerfield

Play explores competitive nature of creativity

Through more than 50 productions, South Carolina Repertory Company has challenged its audiences with theater that does more than just entertain.

Its plays provoke thought and discussion, and its most recent production, "Collected Stories" by Donald Margulies, is no exception.

The play, jointly directed by Tom Evans and Pat Haskell, explores provocative questions about artists -- in this case, two women artists -- and their art.

The plays chosen by the theater company also reflect its emphasis on works that are "no frills," small-scale and that offer an intimacy between the cast and the audience.

"They need to be good, well-written plays and ones we can cast properly, with no more than five people," Haskell says. "We also don't want elaborate sets."
 
About SCRC's Production of Four Beers ... Print E-mail

The Island Packet, Friday, February 27, 2004, by Louise Causey-Lewis

'Four Beers' allows characters to drown their sorrows

The South Carolina Repertory Company continues to present superlative productions of contemporary plays. Its latest offering is "Four Beers," a poignant two-act comedy by David Van Vleck.

Director Tom Evans was involved with the initial presentation of the play at a workshop four years ago, and immediately began his quest for a public production. Since then, "Four Beers" has won the Dayton Playhouse FutureFest and has gathered some very favorable reviews for its Rattlestick Theatre production in New York City, proving that Evans has a keen eye for a winner.

The play is set in a suburban New Jersey bar where four friends meet weekly to share a beer and the traditional televised Monday night football game. Clemson University professor Chip Egan plays Frank, a dry cleaner; George, an auto mechanic, is played by John Woodson from Greenville's Warehouse Theatre; Phil, a photographer and photo shop owner, is played by former Island thespian Beau Phillips; and veteran actor Michael Craig portrays Mitch, the barber. Mel, a postman who joins the quartet for the last third of the show, is played by New York actor Blake White. Mel, by the way, drinks rye, not beer.

On this particular Monday evening, the television set is broken, so the friends are forced into conversation in lieu of football. The men exchange thoughts about a variety of subjects -- women in general, wives, infidelity, vacations, life insurance, retirement, childhood dreams, cars, stamp collecting, among them. All four are approaching retirement age, and all have fallen short of their individual expectations and dreams.

The possible infidelity of Vivian, Frank's wife, is a thread running throughout the play. Supposedly a secret, it becomes a subject of general conversation, until possibility becomes fact in everyone's mind. Egan's Frank, the pillar of respectability, becomes increasingly distraught as the evening progresses, distressed at the idea that it might be the ever-present dry cleaning fumes that have driven his wife astray.

Woodson, while physically presenting the perfect picture of George, also portrays his character with conviction. A fervently patriotic, firmly opinionated "Archie Bunker" type, with rather curious ideas about world religion, Woodson manages to be simultaneously funny and irritating. It would be so easy to overplay this role, to shout just a little too loudly. Woodson hits his character right on the mark with wise professionalism and refrains from taking the role over the edge.

Craig delivers Mitch's innocently inane lines with classic comic timing and a remarkable air of naivete. His simple, loving personality is devoted to his wife, Cindy, who has never quite recovered from the death of their son 20 years ago. His attitude of calm acceptance seems to be the perfect foil for George's blustering.

 

Phillips approaches the character of Phil with edgy anxiety. An artistic philosopher, Phil's various entrepreneurial schemes have been reduced to one photo shop, and he has exhausted his life's savings on failed ideas.

White's weary character Mel throws everyone else's shortcomings into even sharper focus. Although he has just lost his wife, Mel can find consolation in early retirement from the postal service, life insurance benefits, successful mutual funds, an upcoming European vacation and tomorrow's brunch with the beautiful, newly widowed Patricia Kelly. Ironically, he has left his wallet at home, and the less prosperous men end up treating him to several double ryes and a steak dinner. Before leaving, Mel innocently releases a bombshell of information that throws the four regulars into shock.

While billed as a comedy by the playwright, "Four Beers" has sad and tragic undertones running through it.

Also see Boys Night Out: Comedy "Four Beers" spends an evening with five guys by Angela Boucher.
 
About SCRC's Production of Cotton Patch Gospel ... Print E-mail

The Island Packet, Friday, November 28, 2003, by Angela Boucher

Praise the Lord and pass the saltines, please: "Cotton Patch Gospel" brings regional flavor to sacred text

What would Jesus do -- if he had lived in Georgia 60 years ago?

The South Carolina Repertory Company brings this question to the stage in "Cotton Patch Gospel."

It's the second time the theater group has staged the show, which is "back by popular demand."

"We turned away so many people last year that didn't get to see it," said Pat Haskell, director of both shows.

Actor Bruce Kuhn and the Lowcountry Boil Bluegrass Band also are reprising their roles for the production.

The show may involve the same band, actor, and director as last year, but it promises even more fun this time around.

"We are adding more music," Haskell said.

The theater group was so pleased with the music from last year's production that they are adding songs and lyrics to more closely match the original musical score by Harry Chapin.

"Cotton Patch Gospel," written by Tom Key and Russell Treyz, is based on the book "The Cotton Patch Version of Matthew and John" by Clarence Jordan.

"Anybody who loves the New Testament should see the show," Haskell said, adding that it has a wide appeal. "It's really for anyone. There is nobody that shouldn't see it."

The musical drama retells the Gospels of Matthew and John, set in modern times.

The modern-day stable is a trailer park. A modern-day shepherd -- a cattle farmer -- spots the star of Bethlehem. In the play, Jerusalem and Nazareth are Atlanta and Valdosta, Ga., respectively.

Set in a provincial town in Georgia, the musical uses humor and emotion to tell the story of Jesus and his struggle to share his important message.

With five boxes of saltines and two can of sardines, Jesus feeds 5,000 people. He turns water into wine on a second try. He is betrayed by his friend, Jud. When he proclaims that he will die to save the world, Georgia Gov. Pilot sends his men to commit Jesus to Leesburg Correctional Institute.

Haskell said the musical is true to the Bible, with a slightly different tune.

"It's exceptionally well done," Haskell said. "It's a full-length musical drama with humor in it."

The cast for this show is small. Kuhn will perform all the acting and speaking parts.

He is coming to Hilton Head Island from his home in Holland to perform in the show. His other credits include "Les Miserables" on Broadway and the national tour of "Cotton Patch Gospel."

Lowcountry Boil Bluegrass Band is a Bluffton-based band. The group will be performing bluegrass music to help Kuhn tell the story.

Chapin's lyrics are clever and sometimes comical, heightened by the talent of the band. In one song, "Spitball," they sing "Spitball me Lord over the home plate of life."

Also see 'Cotton Patch' a funny familiar tale
 
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