Steinbeck classic makes wonderful local theater www.azstarnet.com ®:
Steinbeck classic makes wonderful local theater
By Kathleen Allen
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona Published: 05.11.2007
Dreams blossom and shatter with such intense swiftness in John Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" that one can get dizzy watching it.
But watch it you must. Beowulf Alley Theatre's production of the play about two farmworkers who long for a place of their own is a rich, nuanced piece that reminds us of the frailty, and cruelty, of human nature.
This is a powerful piece of theater, with poetic language, well-drawn characters, and wonderful foreshadowing of events without ever telescoping them. If you want to see a play that is exquisitely constructed, "Of Mice and Men" is it.
The Courtland Jones-designed set on the Beowulf stage evoked the dusty Salinas Valley and rickety shack that serves as home to migrant farmworkers. Russell Stagg's lighting conjured up the bright light of day and the moody hues of sunset. Jon Marbry's pristine sound made us see birds flying overhead and hear crickets talking to each other.
But it was the actors who really brought Steinbeck's work to painful, vivid life at a preview performance last Friday.
This production veered from most — a robust Terry Erbe played George, whom Steinbeck described as a slight man. Stephen Elton was the mildly retarded Lennie. Steinbeck envisioned this character to be large and lumbering; Elton is actually more slender than Erbe.
We've some advice: Get over the size issue quickly. While physically Steinbeck saw the two as an unlikely pair, Elton and Erbe were able to draw their characters so sharply that size did not matter.
Elton, at times, seemed a bit too bright for Lennie, but he captured the innocence of the character who loves to stroke soft things and longs to care for rabbits on the the farm he and George dream they will one day have.
Erbe's ability to get angry at Lennie for his naivete and still show his love was so well-rooted you never doubted his character.
Slim, the kind-hearted ranchhand, was given gentle life by Brian Wees, and Gregory Sweet was heavy with sorrow and loneliness as Candy, the one-handed ranch worker whose best friend and reason for living was his elderly dog.
This play is saturated with dreams denied and heartbreaking loneliness. It's kind of depressing, truth be told.
But it's also a rich tale of a friendship that goes so deep and true that hope survives.
Director Glen Coffman understood that and directed with a clean, knowing hand.
"Of Mice and Men" can shatter you. But it's also an exhilarating theatrical experience.
● Contact Kathleen Allen at kallen@azstarnet.com or 573-4128.
