Into the Breeches!
Or: The War at Home. Sure, the Greatest Generation stopped Hitler and ushered in an era of unprecedented economic growth, but let’s not forget that those were the Bad Old Days for women, blacks, and homosexuals, all of whom get their chance to lament their situation and then strut their stuff when the wife of a local theater manager gets the idea of Supporting the Troops by putting on Shakespeare’s Henriad — using an all-female cast (plus a stage manager who was kept out of the armed services for being a swish). Director Diana Van Fossen has a scene-stealing machine in aging star Celeste Fielding (Katie MacNichol), who isn’t quite ready to go from portraying dewy Juliet to a dying King Henry IV — she comes to relish the dramatic challenge of adopting a manly swagger, and cleverly argues that since she’s playing a man, she ought to be paid like one, but what’s all this nonsense about being old? She’s difficult and complicated and finely calibrated, which makes her a delight to watch, but also highlights the rest of the characters’ relative simplicity: the wife slipping out from her husband’s shadow, the black costumer who’s had enough of separate-but-equal, etc. There are times when the actors seem constrained by their roles even as their characters burst their respective bonds.
Perhaps most frustrating is the dynamic between wife Maggie Dalton and Ellsworth Snow, the fuddy-duddy head of the theater’s Board, who must be convinced again and again to let the show go on. Snow represents the status quo that’s got to go, except he’s just too much of a sweetie to provide any real obstacle. Once that drama’s gone, all that’s left is laughter —and while there are laughs, this is more of a feel-good affair than a comedy, an extended setup that stops right before the punchline.
When
Ongoing until Sunday, November 13, 2022
Hours
| Sundays, 2pm & 7pm |
| Wednesdays, 7pm |
| Thursdays, 8pm |
| Fridays, 8pm |
| Saturdays, 8pm |