By Heather Crabtree
The Entertainer | Posted: Thursday, October 18, 2007 12:00 am
Albany Civic Theater tops your list of plays to see with an outrageous comedy about not sweating the details
Everyone has a to-do list.
It is the thing that keeps people organized and takes them through life.
Not all lists are as simple as making it to the grocery store for that jar of pasta sauce to go with dinner, though.
The list Cass (Tamara Hawkin) has in Albany Civic Theater's latest production, "Wonder of the World," is so complex that one would expect to find the meaning of life if she ever managed to check each item off.
The outrageously funny play by David Lindsay-Abaire opens at 8 p.m. Friday at the theater, 111 First Ave., in downtown Albany.
Additional performances are at 8 p.m. Oct. 20, 26 and 27, and Nov. 1, 2 and 3; and at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 28.
Finding the meaning in her life is exactly what Cass wants after she discovers a disturbing secret about Kip (Loren Dunn), her husband of seven years.
The funny and energetic character leaves Kip, convinced she misread all the signs in her life that originally directed her to marry him, and journeys to Niagara Falls with her to-do list.
On the way, she checks off "talk to a stranger" when she strikes up a conversation with Lois (Claire Diehl), a drunk traveling to the falls to kill herself by going over in a barrel.
Cass is happy to be free from her bondage, but instead binds herself to the details of the list, which includes things like jumping on the bed, a boat ride through the mist of the falls and a helicopter ride.
However, her strict adherence often costs her experiences that could be equally meaningful if she would look at the bigger picture and stop analyzing the little details.
Working off the idea that Cass focuses on the small details instead of the big picture, Director John Elliott has created a set that is devoid of larger set pieces, such as wall flats. Instead, he uses key elements to place scenes such as a bed, a barrel and a stand-alone door.
"I have staged this play a bit differently, because just as the author wants from Cass, I want the audience to appreciate the world around them anew," Elliott said in his program note for the play. "Scenery and props move on, off, appear, disappear. The visible stagehands (not part of the script) are there to keep the play moving and, I hope, get the audience caught up in the journey and make it theirs."
That journey is also marked by superior technical elements.
Lighting is used to create a visual effect so the falls appear to be flowing.
That visual effect is accompanied by the sound of rushing water, and is only one of many audio elements and songs used to accent scenes in the play.
Another example is in the opening scene, when Cass is watching an old movie on television. Although the TV isn't visible, the audience can hear its audio track while Cass watches it and packs.
Additional cast members include: Emmet Jones as Captain Mike; Arlin Roler as Glen; Karen Emmons as Karla; Miranda Prince as Barbara, Pilot, Waitresses and Janie; Cynthia Harvey as Stagehand one; Scott Harvey as Stagehand two; and Ayla Abbott as Stagehand 3.
CHECK IT OUT
WHAT: "Wonder of the World," a play by David Lindsay-Abaire.
WHERE: Albany Civic Theater, 111 First Ave., downtown.
WHEN: 8 p.m. Oct. 19, 20, 26 and 27, and Nov. 1, 2 and 3; and at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 28.
TICKETS: $10 general admission and $7 for seniors and children under 18. Tickets are available at Sid Stevens Jewelers in Albany, Rice's Pharmacy in Corvallis or the ACT box office 45 minutes before curtain.