Friday, February 28, 2003

LAST CHANCE PLAYS



Two plays end this weekend which are supposed to be fabulous. I'm going to try and see both!



The Caretaker First Stage Providence, St. Paul's Church, Park Place, Pawtucket. 724-8173. Harold Pinter play about a London drifter taken in by a pair of strange brothers. Thu-Sat 8 pm. Closes Sat.
La Bete, University of Rhode Island Theatre, J-Studio, Fine Arts Center, Kingston. 874-5843. Comedy loosely based on the life and works of French playwright Moliere. Thu-Sat 8 pm. $12, students/children/elderly $10. Closes Sat.



And while I'm recommending plays, I can recommend the Perishable Theatre's Long Journey To Whereto. I saw it last week at the press opening. The play, is non-linear and not quite finished (they received a $10,000 grant to continue working on the show for the next few years) So it can be difficult to figure out what's going on. When you visit their website, you can even give them your feedback on how YOU think they should proceed with the show..
The set and lighting is all quite beautiful, and there are several wonderful moments in the show. (the actors are all quite skilled, although not quite used to their full extent yet) My advice (which I gave to the director) is to continue to work on the virtuosity of the actors in their individual pieces in the show, and to find a specific image. They bill it as a theatrical puzzle, but most puzzles have a specific image that they are trying to create. This show doesn't have that image yet-- and when it finally does, I think it will be a real work of art.

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