‘Carpetbagger’s’
explores Southern roots
By Christine G. Adamo
On-line Forty-Niner
Joseph
Thompson may be dead, but his legacy of
land ownership, due-order parenting and
disunited offspring survive him in the West
Coast premier of “The Carpetbagger’s Children”
at South Coast Repertory’s Argyros Stage.
This comic drama, written by award-winning
playwright Horton Foote, captures the thoughts
of three sisters reconciling their views
of life with their father, mother and each
other in their late-19th century farm community
of Harrison, Texas.
Thompson, a former private in the Union
Army and the carpetbagger in question, amassed
his fortune by stringing together odd parcels
of land at rock-bottom prices to create
a tapestry of cotton fields, which build
his family fortune.
He is eulogized in monologues delivered
by three of his daughters who, like his
land, are as different in their demeanor
and relationship to him and each other like
swatches on a scrap-tapestry travel bag.
Cornelia, played by Robin Pearson Rose is
a stoic spinster whose life was marked by
responsibility and an absence of lasting
romance is full of composure.
With her older sister’s untimely death—the
death of her own opportunity for a life
outside the land her father acquired, Cornelia
turns to the audience and says, “Beth told
me once, when she was sick, she’d teach
me how to dance. She never got well and
I never learned to dance.”
Nan Martin gives a fine performance as wispy
Grace Anne, the seemingly flighty middle
sister whose relationship with love lands
her in dire straits and at-odds with the
rest of her family after having eloped and
signing away lasting rights to her share
of the land.
Conversely, Sissie, played by Linda Gehringer
prides herself on being predictable and
steering clear of controversy. Admittedly
happy to be the baby of the family, she
sings and smiles her way through life.
Gehringer brings balance to her character,
tempering niceness playing up to Sissie’s
quiet strength and satisfaction with her
station in life.
“The Carpetbagger’s Children” serves as
a warm tribute to the playwright’s Texan
roots and uses song, set design and sound
effects to pull the audience back in time.
Foote, known for his contributions to film
as well as stage, received an Academy Award
for Best Screenplay for the 1962 film “To
Kill a Mockingbird,” and won a Pulitzer
Prize for his play “The Young Man from Atlanta”
in 1994.
Foote also wrote the screenplay for 1992’s
“Of Mice and Men,” and executive produced
and wrote the screenplay for 1985’s “The
Trip to Bountiful.”
Be forewarned, the 80-minute play moves
at the speed of a Southern breeze—perhaps
a bit too slow for West Coast folks. The
absence of a continual backdrop of sound
is also, at times, unnerving. Nonetheless,
“The Carpetbagger’s Children” is well-written,
well-designed and acted with humor and compassion.
Tickets cost $27-54 and student discounts
are available. “The Carpetbagger’s Children”
runs through Feb. 16.
|
