I Do Believe in Theatre . . . and Pookas? — HARVEY at TAG

As I sit in the audience at TAG, waiting for Harvey to begin, Lauren Ballesteros steps out in costume to give the preshow announcements: thank you all for supporting the theatre, turn off your cellphones, etc…, and then remains on stage as the lights dim and rise, and the play begins—she is now Mrs. Johnson, the maid. Moments like this are clues for me about what sort of production has been created. A production that blurs the walls between reality and fiction, between performance and truth. A production in which choices made by the cast and crew reflect themes and content written into the script.

Smith, Silipa, and Polson
I don’t recall ever reading Harvey or seeing a production of the play before. Mary Chase, the playwright, received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1945, and I can understand why. The script is smart and funny, and very poignant. The heart of the matter lies in the character of Elwood P. Dowd, flawlessly embodied by Sam Polson. Dowd chums around with a pooka named Harvey, explained to be a mythological Celtic shape-shifter, always “appearing” as a large animal, in this case, a seven-foot-plus-tall rabbit. Dowd’s family is embarrassed by his “imaginary” friend, and the plot revolves around his sister’s decision to have him committed. Watching Polson is reason enough to see Harvey at TAG. His charm and good-nature on stage are familiar, somehow, like someone you’ve met before that renewed your faith in humankind.

There are other good reasons to see the show as well. I’ve already mentioned how much I like the script. It’s a tightly crafted “comedy of errors,” with fun characters and subplots woven in and around Dowd’s meanderings. His sister, Veta Louise Simmons, played admirably by Polson’s real-life wife, Patricia Gillespie, has perhaps the most important part in the story. Gillespie portrays a woman both likeable and sympathetic. Her journey is the key and I was seriously invested in her choices and discoveries along the way and their repercussions—sometimes comic but ultimately very dramatic.

The cast, overall, has a lot of fun. The females tend to really ham up their comic portrayals. Kathy Bowers is fabulous as Mrs. Ethel Chauvenet, getting the voice, the attitude, the physicality, and the timing just right. Her part is a small but much-appreciated one. Ballesteros delights in her minor role as Betty Chumley, the doctor’s wife, full of expression and delicate nuance. Lauren Murata plays Myrtle Mae Simmons, daughter of Veta and niece to Elwood. Murata’s Myrtle Mae is young, loud, obnoxious, bratty, annoying, and horny. I really couldn’t stand her, which I imagine was the intention, so bravo.

The other over-the-top female character, Ruth Kelly, R. N., is played by Adriane Flower. Flower’s nurse and Thomas Smith’s doctor, Lyman Sanderson, M. D., have a classic doctor/nurse storyline. Their comedy depends on timing and delivery, a real back and forth routine with great potential. The two are a nice visual match for the roles, and I would have liked to see their comedic chemistry taken to the next level of refinement.

The rest of the men had their fun, too. William R. Chumley, M. D., played by Bob Hamilton, transforms, and his final monologue was one of my favorite parts of the show—very funny stuff between him and Polson towards the end. Richard C. Goodman is also a comfortably humorous fit as Judge Omar Gaffney, excellent at keeping the action rolling.

D. Tafai Silipa, who’s about as big in stature as the mythical Harvey, matches his character, Don Wilson, the institution’s “henchman” and/or male nurse, to his size. Wilson, as portrayed by Silipa, definitely isn’t a “good guy,” but that’s not really saying much. He’s loyal to Chumley. That, I think, is his primary motivation. What leaves me wondering exactly what kind of person Wilson’s supposed to be is the intentionality. As I reflect about the character now, I wonder if a little naïveté wouldn’t go a long way.

Crump, Goodman, and Gillespie
S. Rick Crump enters in the final scene and nails his role as the taxi driver sent by fate…or Harvey, to intervene. The end of this play elevates all that comes before. Polson and Gillespie really shine here. The production finishes on a note of pure charm.

Director David C. Farmer found a strong cast and crew and made good use of them on the whole. Comedy’s no easy task. There were some moments in scenes where the jokes got crunched or the energy dropped when I wanted it to build, but the audience didn’t seem to notice or mind. I’m probably extra picky here because I saw a little bit of wasted potential that it seemed could be easily tweaked, given the attention and time.  

So what about Harvey? Well, Harvey is real and he’s not, maybe the same way a play is real and also not. The same way a set is real, a wig is real, a costume is real…and also…not. The design elements are all done exceptionally well, with authenticity to the time in which the story takes place—hats off to all of the designers: Andy Alvarado, Thomas Tochiki, Carlynn Wolfe, and Greg Howell—but the realistic authenticity is subtly undermined in this production in different ways. Between scenes, the actors enter—in costume—in low light, perfectly visible to the audience, to change the set pieces around; there’s no attempt to preserve an illusion of reality. I already mentioned the maid giving the preshow announcements. Another thing (which I found distracting) that serves this trend of blurring the meaning of real: the acting styles were different, with some characters very “believable” and others quite blatantly “playing.” All part of a brilliant directorial conception?… Maybe. 

In the program’s “Notes from the Director,” Farmer writes: “At the end of the day, reality here is irrelevant, because it is the power of belief that prevails.” I don’t think we need to believe in Harvey and his powers to appreciate the show, but I agree with Farmer that belief is what the play is about: belief—not in Harvey, necessarily, but in what Harvey represents—in the power of theatre, which can accomplish for humanity much the same as what Harvey accomplishes for Elwood P. Dowd and those lucky enough to meet him. 

For more info, visit the Facebook Event Page, or TAG's Website.

Photos stolen from David C. Farmer's facebook album: HARVEY & COMPANY

Comments

  1. Thank you! It was so good to see you in da house! I'm glad you enjoyed our production! And we'll only get better!

    D. Tafa'i Silipa

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks so much for this review. You are correct: the cast IS having fun!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Impressive--I can only hope you'll review The Maestro's Woman reading Sept 23 and 24.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Thanks very much, Eleanor, for this intelligent and well written review. You should be writing for a mainstream publication to share your talent with a wider public!

    David C. Farmer

    ReplyDelete

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