The Hot L Baltimore
The missing E in the Hotel Baltimore's neon marquee is a portent of things to come. The once-classy, medium-sized hotel is now a flophouse scheduled for demolition. Lanford Wilson's slice-of-life comedy-drama (1973) follows the lives of a dozen characters, many of whom will have no place to go. One expects, in plays of this sort, to see the denizens band together and beat city hall. Wilson's bittersweet script looks back on an era when such feats - and the well-made plays depicting them - were still possible, but are no more (it also anticipates the homeless, ten years before they had a name). The Sullivan Players production has some rough edges -- timing of the intricate dialogue, in particular -- but hits the play's emotional core: various reactions to the threat of uprooting. Anne Sermon and Devlin play contrasting prostitutes, volatile Suzy and chipper April, to good effect. Roxanne Hoffert's tough-talking Jackie and Jennie Olson's Girl (she hasn't decided on a name yet) energize their scenes. Kevin Six, Timothy Carr, Michael Bova, also contribute. Tim Simoneau's seedy set and Sheila Rosen's array of costumes, from ersatz to humble, create the proper look.
Worth a try.
When
Ongoing until Sunday, May 30, 2010
Hours
| Fridays, 7pm |
| Saturdays, 7pm |