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Regional Reviews: Florida - Southern The Book Club Play
The leader of the book club is an ever so slightly uptight and controlling Ana (Barbara Sloan). Sloan captures the essence of a minor intellectual snob, still likeable through her flaws. She and her husband Rob (Stephen G. Anthony) host the meetings at their home, which looks like it came out of a design catalog (impeccably executed by scenic designer Jodi Dellaventura). In truth, Rob would rather be watching the football game, or at least be given the CliffsNotes version of the books being discussed, but he hangs around for the food and the socialization. Anthony is the best thing in the show. His physicality is comfortable, his comic deliveries are all well timed, and, frankly, he has some of the best lines in the script. They are written for a man with no agenda (other than getting fed) who simply sees right through the rhetoric at hand. He is perfectly cast. A talented Lela Elam plays the eager Lily, who is clearly smitten with the unexpected newcomer Alex (Paul Tei). Perhaps in an effort to convey an effervescent personality, Elam overacts much of the show, perpetually smiling and undulating as she shifts her weight and position. She also tries to establish a connection with Will (Michael McKeever) that doesn't work. Together they stage a couple of knowing laughs between friends that come off as uncomfortably fake. McKeever has a couple of funny comic moments during his character's epiphany of sexual orientation, but his performance as a whole is rather pat. This is perhaps simply the arc of the character in the way that it is written. Paul Tei has an energy that is distinctly different from the rest of the cast, and is ideal in setting his character apart. As Alex he brings into their group a revitalizing challenge to the way they have been thinking about literature. He is supposed to be the new energy that sets them on their heels, and he does this beautifully. Niki Fridh adds a wonderfully neurotic quirkiness to her character of Jen. The character doesn't have the funniest of lines as she's a tad on the depressed side, but Fridh is very watchable. This production of The Book Club Play, while generally enjoyable, is not one of Actors' Playhouse best works. It feels a bit stiff and inorganic, and there were moments in the first act when Sloan seemed searching for her lines. The culprit is in the pacing. The whole show was done as if they were doing a production of Other Desert Cities rather than a comedy akin to something by Neil Simon. In theatre, pacing can be both a friend or an enemy, but in this production it is yet to be tamed. The other plays written by Karen ZacarÃas include Just Like Us (adapted from the book by Helen Thorpe), Legacy Of Light, Mariela In The Desert, The Sins Of Sor Juana, and the adaptation of Julia Alvarez's How The Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents. Her musicals with composer Debbie Wicks la Puma include Jane of the Jungle, Einstein Is A Dummy, Ferdinand the Bull, and Chasing George Washington. Her awards received include New Voices Award, 2010 Steinberg Citation-Best New Play, Paul Aneillo Award, National Francesca Primus Prize, New Voices Award, National Latino Play Award, Finalist Susan Blackburn, Helen Hayes for Outstanding New Play. The Book Club Play will be appearing through June 7, 2015, at the Actors' Playhouse, at the Miracle Theatre in Coral Gables. Performances are usually Wednesday - Saturday at 8:00 PM, and Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 PM. Information and tickets may be obtained by contacting the theater at their box office at 305-444-9293, 305-444-9293, or online at www.actorsplayhouse.org. Actors' Playhouse is the nonprofit resident theatre company and managing agent of the historic Miracle Theatre on Miracle Mile in Coral Gables. Actors' Playhouse, which has brought home over 75 regional Carbonell Awards for artistic excellence, is a Florida Presenting Cultural Organization and one of 22 major cultural institutions in Miami-Dade County. In addition to its Mainstage season, Actors' Playhouse offers a year-round season of Musical Theatre for Young Audiences, a National Children's Theatre Festival, a Theatre Conservatory and Summer Camp Program, as well as educational arts outreach programs for underserved youth, and has initiated a "Young Talent Big Dreams" contest for children in partnership with The Children's Trust. Actors' Playhouse is located at 280 Miracle Mile in Coral Gables, Florida. Cast: Crew: *Designates a member of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
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