Review: Wagon Wheel's 'Mockingbird' Killed By Comedy
Posted
David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
"To Kill A Mockingbird" is a great American novel, and the movie starring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch is a classic.
But Wagon Wheel Theatre's production of the play version failed to even come close to greatness opening night Wednesday. Too much comedy in the first half weighed the serious tone of the show down for too long, even hampering the second half of the play.
Wagon Wheel has one non-musical each summer season. In 2007, the show was a riveting "Picnic." But the play this year is anything but a picnic.
Comedy can provide audiences with a little relief during shows dealing with dramatic themes. "Mockingbird" certainly deals with intense issues, such as racism and rape. And "Mockingbird" has some light moments so its audiences can breathe. But Wagon Wheel's production just drowns so much in comedy that it struggles to come up for air for the more dramatic moments.
"Mockingbird" is based on Harper Lee's novel. Set in 1935 Alabama, the book version tells the story of a black man, Tom Robinson (Charles Glenn), wrongly accused of rape by a white woman, Mayella Ewell (Sarah Goeke), through the eyes of a 6-year-old girl, Scout (Tara Rusinack). The play, however, is narrated by an older woman, Maudie (Pat Daniels), and thus feels like it's told through Maudie's eyes, not Scout's. There's also a secondary storyline involving the reclusive Boo Radley (Gregory Griffin), but that storyline almost feels forgotten in this play production.The cast and director Scott Michaels have to work with what is in the script, so if the play feels like it's being told more through Maudie's eyes than Scout's, perhaps there's only so much they can do with that. And with Maudie's narrative, the story is advanced. But it all feels wrong and out of whack like someone had a great opera and turned it into a rock song sung by The Jonas Brothers.
Before I dig the grave for this production of "Mockingbird," however, let me try and focus on a few positive aspects of the show.
As Mayella, Goeke gave the most dramatic performance of the show. During the courtroom scene in Act II, Goeke keeps her character agitated. She rocks back and forth, keeping her head hung down low, looking to the ground. Her long blond hair covers her face, and you feel Mayella's stress.
When Mayella takes the stand during the trial, her voice rises and falls with her emotions. Goeke's hand gestures also fly with wild abandonment like someone in a state of panic. From all observations, Goeke looks like she prepared for the role well.
One of Tom Robinson's hands is mangled, which is an integral part of Finch's defense. Glenn never forgets to keep that hand close to his chest so audiences never forget it's been mangled.
Glenn also plays Robinson well by keeping him soft-spoken and polite. Glenn has the role down, and you almost wish more time was devoted to his character.
There are three kids' roles in "Mockingbird". There's Rusinack as Scout, Jarred Brooks as Dill and Gabe Hoagland as Jem. I applaud the youngsters for knowing their lines and delivering them without too many stumbles.
Having said that, however, when the tone of the play shifts, the kids don't fully shift with it. Everything is still Pollyanna in their world until the end. But, they all three show obvious promise for a future in theater.
There was just an overall lack of intensity and feeling in the show opening night. Lines were more like read than acted. Except for Goeke and Glenn, that goes for the whole cast. And the cast knows I'm usually a big fan of their work - just not this play, not opening night Wednesday.
There's also this big lighting mistake that must be mentioned. In Act II, Bob Ewell (Clay Sanderson) attacks Scout and Jem, only to be fought off by Boo Radley. The scene takes place at night, but the lighting is so dark, who can tell what's going on? Lighting should not ever be so dark that the audiences can't make heads or tales what is happening on stage, even during a night scene, but that was the case in the show Wednesday.
I would have preferred to have enjoyed Wagon Wheel's production of "To Kill A Mockingbird," but that's, unfortunately, just not the case. It's the least interesting and compelling show of the season.
My rating of the show (out of four): 1.75.
To order tickets for "To Kill A Mockingbird", call 574-267-8041, toll free at 866-823-2618 or visit online at www.wagonwheeltheatre.com
