By
Allison Eaton
On-line Forty-Niner
HOLLYWOOD--Down
below the buzz of a typically hectic evening
on the Sunset strip, 76 Productions will
be presenting its west coast premiere of
Irish playwright, Connor McPhere-son's "This
Lime Tree Bower" through September
20 at the Gardner Stages.
Having
earned mixed reviews during previous runs
in New York, Boston and Chicago several
years ago, cast member Jeremy Stevens said,
Director Rand Marsh is hoping to catch a
ride on the coattails of the success enjoyed
by "The Good Thief," another play
by McPhereson. It recently earned critical
acclaim after its run in Los Angeles.
Written
in 1995, the script is inspired by a selection
of poetic prose by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
dating back to the late 1790s. It is a story
of contemporary boredom, desperation and
reckless behavior in modern-day Dublin,
where everything evolves around two brothers,
Joe and Frank, and their sister's potential
fiancé, Ray.
The
actors are fully aware of one another's
presence onstage, but that is where their
interaction ends. In fact, three-man monologue
was scripted without any stage directions.
Each character develops only as the individual
actors interact with the audience, creating
a lively atmosphere at the very least.
Surprisingly,
the actors ran into trouble maintaining
their Irish accent, though Steven's said
they were having an off night Saturday due
to the malfunctioning air conditioner.
The little alcove of a theater, nestled
in the basement of the Gardner Stages was,
in fact, terribly stifling.
Witty
puns are eased into the script along with
offensively raw jokes that send the audience
into moments of uproarious laughter, sharply
contrasting the sullenly nagging idea that
desperate times do in fact sometimes call
for desperate measures.
Seth
Macari's performance as Ray was hands down
the highlight of the performance.
His impressive stage presence and complete
comfort within his character brought forth
an intensity the other two actors seemed
to lack.
