Reviewed by Tony Annicone
The Arctic Playhouse’s current show is Neil Simon’s 1991 Pulitzer Prize winning play, “Lost in Yonkers.” The show is set in 1942 and it examines the relationships in the emotionally crippled Kurnitz family. The show is a coming of age tale that focuses on brothers, Artie and Jay, left in the care of their Grandmother Kurnitz and Aunt Bella in Yonkers, NY. Their desperate father, Eddie, works as a traveling salesman to pay off debts incurred following the death of his wife. Grandma is a severe, frightfully intimidating immigrant who terrified her children as they were growing up, damaging them in varying degrees. Bella is a sweet but mentally slow and highly excitable woman who longs to marry the usher at a local movie house so she can escape the oppressive household. Bella’s brother, Louie is a small time, tough-talking hoodlum who is on the run, while sister, Gert suffers from a breathing problem whose cause is more psychological than physical. Neil Simon shows why the five adults in this show have become the way they are and how it affects the two teenage boys left in their midst. Directors Christian O’Brien and Eileen Goretaya blend the comic and dramatic moments together splendidly, leaving the audience laughing and crying at all the appropriate moments. With their direction, Christian and Eileen’s cast wins a thunderous standing ovation at the close of the show.
Christian and Eileen bring out the best in their performers. They pay attention to every nuance their cast makes, creating a stunning show the audience can savor. The splendid 1940’s set is by Jim Belanger and Lloyd Felix who wall papered it splendidly while the gorgeous period costumes are by Nancy Spirito. The cast is led by two powerhouse actresses. Pretty brunette, Valerie Gallagher plays Bella, an affectionate 35 year old who is mildly retarded. Bella wants the same things other women want, getting married and having a family. However her mother smothers her longings with a stern unbending hand. Valerie plays this sympathetic character splendidly especially when she makes the audience cry while pleading with her family to let her marry the movie usher. Bella’s family cheers her on when she finally stands up to her overbearing mother to let her live her life to the fullest. Ida Zecco brings this German monster of a grandmother to life. Her bitchy, mean spirited behavior hides her true hurt at the death of her young son and daughter many years ago. Ida’s acting prowess makes the audience dislike this horrible woman until you find out the true reason for her behavior. Both Ida and Valerie’s interactions are marvelous and set a high standard for the other performers.
The youngest cast members are marvelous in their roles, stealing many scenes along the way with their strong acting ability. Ryan McKenna as Jay and Ethan Clarke as Artie play the boys left to live with their terrible, unemotional grandmother after the death of their mother. They shine in their time on stage. Ryan and Ethan handle their enormous amount of dialogue with the ease of veteran performers. They make the humor, pathos and fright of their plight in Yonkers, a joy to watch. Ryan has tears in his eyes when their father is ready to leave them. He and Ethan are also fabulous in the emotion packed scene when Bella stands up to her mother’s vile behavior as well as in the scene where they stand up to their Uncle Louie. Ethan’s timing with his comic lines is topnotch and his imitation of the Grandmother as well as spitting the awful soup into a vase on the table are splendid, too. His facial expressions are superb. They make the audience believe they could be brothers in real life. Bravo on a job very well done!!
The other dysfunctional family members are the mobster, Uncle Louie, the speech impaired, Aunt Gert, and their emotional father, Eddie. Christian does double duty in the show not only directing it but is topnotch as Louie, He has the gangster swagger and tough talk with boys down pat. Louie is also able to handle his tough mother. Christian brings out the comic aspect of the character but also shows Louie’s soft spot for Bella when he gives her the money she needs. Samantha Gobin does a wonderful job as Gert and also displays the nervousness around her mother and her warmth for Bella with a hug after Bella is devastated by her mother’s rejection of her plans to marry Johnny. Steven Dulude as Eddie, garners the empathy of the audience when he describes the death of his wife while having to leave his sons with his awful mother and the financial trouble he is in. It’s good to see him back onstage again having directed him in “Rumors”, “South Pacific” and “The Sound of Music” in the past. So for a fantastic rendition of this Pulitzer Prize winning Neil Simon show, be sure to catch “Lost in Yonkers” by The Arctic Playhouse. It is wonderful show for this season. I have many fond memories of this show having directed it back in 2002.
LOST IN YONKERS (13 to 29 September)
The Arctic Playhouse,117 Washington Street, West Warwick, RI
1(401)573-3443 or www.thearcticplayhouse.com
