Jordan Wright
September 12, 2017
Special to The Alexandria Times
 Boolie (Joel Durgavich), Daisy (Patricia Kratzer) and Hoke (Kevin Sockwell) ~ Photographer: Matt Liptak A talented, tightly knit cast of three deliver on Alfred Uhry’s heartwarming tale of Daisy Werthan, a well-heeled elderly Southern lady, Boolie Werthan, her successful son, and Hoke Colburn, her dutiful chauffeur. The Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, made into a film with Jessica Tandy and Morgan Freeman, gave Tandy and the picture Academy Awards in 1989 and has been beloved by audiences ever since.
 Daisy (Patricia Kratzer) and Hoke (Kevin Sockwell) ~ Photographer: Matt Liptak Daisy (Patricia Kratzer) is the paragon of Southern respectability in the Jim Crow South. Adhering to all its social restraints and mindful of her position as an upstanding member of her Jewish temple, she has both a girlish vulnerability and, alternatively, a stern demeanor from her days as a schoolteacher that could set your hair on fire. Daisy hails from the bygone era of Southern ladies who ruled their households with an iron fist in a velvet glove and kept guard dog-like vigilance in fear their servants would steal behind their backs. It is the true story of Uhry’s grandmother and the chauffeur she employed for over 25 years.
Set in Atlanta, Georgia in 1948 when ladies of means had drivers and fancy cars to shuttle them from their hairdressers to their places of worship – including the Piggly Wiggly, the legendary supermarket of the South – it opens to a scene with her concerned son Boolie (Joel Durgavich) after she has crashed her Packard due to her failing eyesight. (Written in the late 80’s, Daisy at 72 is over the hill. Hmm.) Boolie, standing firm against her protestations, has decided her driving days are kaput and Hoke (Kevin Sockwell) is hired on as her chauffeur.
 Daisy (Patricia Kratzer) and Hoke (Kevin Sockwell) ~Photographer: Matt Liptak Director Jim Howard takes us seamlessly through a series of some twenty-eight tricky scene changes with the help of Lighting Designer Marzanne Claiborne who focuses attention on the evolving vignettes from 1948, a time when Jews and Blacks were second class citizens in the South, to 1973 Mobile, Alabama where, decades after they have formed an indestructible bond, Daisy invites Hoke to a dinner for Martin Luther King, Jr. Setting the tone, vintage photos of the period and Daisy’s fading furniture are featured along with a “car” of sorts where the two converse on life’s puzzlements and injustices. Shades of the Ku Klux Klan and their fiery reign of terror hover menacingly over both Daisy and Hoke’s life. When Hoke relates a gruesome tale of lynching, Daisy is faced with the harsh reality that her life shares the same pain and uncertainty as Hoke’s.
But it is the humor and wisdom they impart that strengthens the bonds of their unusual friendship as well as the tender mercies they offer one another that make this tale so heartwarming while affording us a glimpse into the uneasy relationship between mistress and servant, Black and Jew, with charm, humor and poignancy. Nuanced performances by Kratzer and Sockwell are indelible.
Recommended for its relevance to today’s struggles against the re-emerging political climate of hate and prejudice. Lest we forget.
Through October 15th at The Little Theatre of Alexandria, 600 Wolfe Street. For tickets and information call the box office at 703 683-0496 or visit www.thelittletheatre.com
Jordan Wright
September 13, 2016
Special to The Alexandria Times
 Brenda Parker (Clairee), Kelsey Yudice (Shelby), Patricia Spencer Smith (Ouiser), Susan Smythe (Annelle), Carla Crawford (Truvy). Photo Credit Misty Angel Most of you can recall the 1989 movie Steel Magnolias. You know the one with Julia Roberts as Shelby, the bride-to-be who suffers from diabetes, and Sally Field as her disapproving mother M’Lynn. And who can forget Dolly Parton in the role of Truvy Jones, the sweet and sexy beauty shop owner? Or Shirley MacLaine as Ouiser, the wisecracking senior who calls it as she sees it. It had a killer cast that also starred Olympia Dukakis as Clairee, the wife of the town’s former mayor, and was a true story based on the death of playwright Robert Harling’s sister. Maybe you saw the all-Black cast in the 2012 Lifetime TV remake with Queen Latifah and Phylicia Rashad. The sublime Alfre Woodard played Ouiser and Jill Scott was Truvy. It was a flop, but when it comes to dissing husbands and the enduring power of sisterhood, it seems there is always an audience, and always a remake.
Set in Truvy’s beauty salon in small town Chinquapin, Louisiana, the plot revolves around six women whose lives intersect through family and friendship. Unlike the original film, in this version it is an all-female cast.
 Alana D. Sharp (Mary Lynn) and Carla Crawford (Truvy) – Photos by Misty Angel Carla Crawford shines as Truvy. Her timing and delivery are flawless. Both the glue and the dynamic force in this production, I hope to see her play more leading lady roles. Alana D. Sharp in the role of M’Lynn shows dramatic skill in her second act soliloquy, and Kelsey Yudice offers up a nuanced performance as the ever-optimistic Shelby. Susan Smythe brings a sympathetic tenderness to Annelle, the wayward Bible thumper, and the ever-talented Patricia Spencer Smith, as Ouiser, who gets some of the best lines and best laughs, is hilarious. Oddly Brenda Parker, known as a reliably fine and well-established actor, gave a puzzling interpretation of Clairee, morphing from a good ole gal into a British-accented snob. Oh well, it was opening night.
 (l -R) Susan Smythe (Annelle), Carla Crawford (Truvy) – Photo Credit Misty Angel Although there are laughs aplenty in this all-female cast, the humor is so dated that most born after the 90’s will have no earthly idea what they are talking about. Call waiting as a novelty? Having your “colors done”? [Note to younger readers: It means getting a clothing and makeup color palette chosen to suit your skin and hair tones. It was a once a life-or-death thing.]
Though LTA has made their bones putting on top notch musicals, delightfully bawdy British drawing room comedies and intricately staged murder mysteries, I had been encouraged of late to watch them expand their work with edgier productions, even controversial themes. Last season LTA appeared keen on attracting a new, younger audience, critical to all theaters, with Laughing Stock, In the Heights and God of Carnage…even Spamalot and The Rocky Horror Picture Show were a far braver than past productions.
That said, Director Sharon Veselic has assembled some fine actors to bring this old comedy to life. And, whatever you think of the 80’s, leg warmers are coming back and not just for Truvy’s sake.
Through October 1st at The Little Theatre of Alexandria, 600 Wolfe Street. For tickets and information call the box office at 703 683-0496 or visit www.thelittletheatre.com
Jordan Wright
December 3, 2015
Special to The Alexandria Times
Reviewer’s Pick – Avant Bard’s Theatre on the Edge brings us Holiday Memories, the tender and evocative semi-autobiographical tale drawn from two beloved short stories by Truman Capote, “A Christmas Memory” and “A Thanksgiving Visitor”. Having seen this at press night Monday past, I can attest to its indelibly affecting charm.
 (From left:) Séamus Miller (Buddy), Christopher Henley (Truman) – DJ Corey Photography Directed by Tom Prewitt and staged by Russell Vandenbroucke the show stars Christopher Henley as Truman, Séamus Miller as Buddy (Truman as a lad), Charlotte Akin as Miss Sook, with Liz Dutton and Devon Ross fulfilling several ancillary roles.
 (The cast of Holiday Memories, from left:) Charlotte Akin (Miss Sook), Devon Ross (Man), Christopher Henley (Truman), Liz Dutton (Woman), Séamus Miller (Buddy) – DJ Corey Photography The play is set in Depression-Era Alabama where young Truman, who is coming to terms with his homosexuality, lives with his adored aunt, Miss Sook, a forthright spinster who administers life’s lessons with a gentle hand. Henley provides the richly textured narration delivering a riveting performance that is nothing short of brilliant reminding this reviewer of Sam Waterston both in spirit and in appearance. Akin too, seizes her character with a ferocity and nuance that is beautifully developed, while Miller lends an endearing pathos to the fragile boy who struggles to find his identity. Through December 20th at Theatre on the Run at 3700 South Four Mile Run Drive, Arlington, VA 22206. For tickets call 703 418- 4108 or visit Avant Barde Theatre
 Heather Norcross as Ghost of Christmas Present with Lawrence O. Grey Jr. as Ebenezer Scrooge – Photos by Doug Olmsted The Little Theatre of Alexandria presents Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, a lavish, family friendly, Victorian paean to the age-old tale of Scrooge’s redemption. Kudos to the adorable Tiny Tim and a cheery nod to the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future. Through December 20th at 600 Wolfe Street, Alexandria, VA, 22314. For tickets call 703 683-0496 or visit The Little Theatre of Alexandria
 (L-R) Michael Sharp, Peter Boyer and Tracey Stephens at MetroStage – Photo credit Chris Banks MetroStage ratchets up Dickens’ tale with a distinctly hilarious, seat-of-your-pants spoof full of dancing and singing to your favorite Broadway tunes. The inimitable Howard Breitbart serves as musical director in Broadway Christmas Carol. Through December 27th at 1201 Royal Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. For tickets call 703 548-9044 or visit MetroStage
 Nova Y. Payton at Signature Theatre – photo courtesy of Signature Theatre Signature Theatre brings Christmas cheer with Dreamgirls star Nova Y. Payton backed by a rockin’ chorus and raising the rafters with holiday tunes like This Christmas, Holiday Rock, Santa Baby, and I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus. Through December 24th at 4200 Campbell Avenue in Shirlington Village, Arlington, VA 22206. For tickets call 703 820-9771 or visit Signature
 Washington National Opera: Holiday Family Opera: Hansel and Gretel – Photo courtesy of The Kennedy Center The Kennedy Center has a host of holiday happenings including the NSO Pops conducted by Principal Pops Conductor Steven Reineke and featuring the von Trapps, of the famed Sound of Music family, with Broadway’s Stephanie J. Bloch performing Christmas classics and new holiday tunes. The Washington National Opera offers a family-friendly Hansel and Gretel complete with cackling witch, enchanted fairies, dancing animals and a massive gingerbread oven. For the high brow, Handel’s Messiah sing-along is on December 23rd. Check listings for these limited performances at Kennedy Center or call 202 467- 4200.
The Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic presents Two Concertos and a Celebration. Handel’s popular Messiah performed by the NOVA Community Chorus and backed by the splendid symphony who add 20th and 21st century music to the afternoon program. Check the schedule for performance times and locations. For tickets call 703 799- 8229 or visit The Washington Metropolitan Philharmonic
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