Well, it turns out I lied. Actually The Lion in Winter was NOT the close of the Quad Cities’ theatre season. The close-out is actually Playcrafter’s Barn Theatre’s production of Christopher Sergel’s adaptation of the 1948 book Cheaper by the Dozen a real-life recounting of growing up in a household of 12 children authored by two of those children: Frank Gilbreth, Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey and here directed by Emma Terronez. Terronez has an impressive acting background but – based solely on my recollection from attending lots of QC theatre – I believe this may be her debut as a director and, if so, she has a promising future.
While this may not be a well-known story to the current generation, 62 years ago Sr. Mary Huberta assigned my seventh grade class to read the book and all this time later I still remember it quite well. The book was adapted to both a stage and film versions in the early 1950’s, but the 2003 version which you may have seen starring Steve Martin bears little resemblance to the book.
The play is set in 1920’s Montclair, New Jersey and spotlights the Gilbreth family’s patriarch, Frank, Sr., who is an industrial engineer consultant or efficiency expert, well played by the talented Joe Urbaitis; Frank is obsessed with incorporating his theories on efficiency into his family and summons them with a whistle, timing how quickly they assemble. He is also obsessed with his kids’ academic achievement, pushing them to skip a grade whenever they can. He is also old fashioned and somewhat of a lovable tyrant in the management of his brood. By the way only nine children are portrayed in the show. The toddlers and/or babies are just referred to in the dialogue.
Obviously, an entire book can’t be condensed down for the stage, so this script mainly focuses on the recounting of eldest daughter Anne’s (portrayed by Chloe Hansen) campaign to convince her controlling dad that times they are a changin’ and girls in the1920’s wear silk stockings, stylish clothes and go on dates with (gasp!) BOYS unchaperoned!
Knowing the story as I do – which does color my opinion – I was a bit disappointed in the script adaptation. Frank, Sr.’s character is domineering and, although played very well by the fabulous Emmalee Hillburn, Mrs. Gilbreth comes off as a ditzy, blindly supportive wife with no smarts of her own when, in fact, Lillian Gilbreth was herself and industrial engineer and psychologist – that alone being remarkable for the era – and she actually collaborated with her husband in developing their children’s extracurricular studies and discipline. This could rankle modern sensibilities, so please remember that the adaption was written at a vastly different time than the present.
Massive compliments go out to set designers Elle Winchester and Chris Sambdaman and their crew for a very impressive 1920’s parlor but I can’t imagine why the backstage lights were left on during the entire show which could easily be seen from the audience.
I’m sorry to say that once again I could not hear large portions of dialogue. I understand small children have difficulty with volume and I give them a pass, but several of the teenagers, with the exception of Whitney Brown who plays Ernestine, were inconsistent in their projection erring more to the side of unintelligible. There were times my seat was so close to a character I could have touched them yet I couldn’t hear most of their dialogue. In addition, Terronez twice had characters facing upstage all the way back on the proscenium which only exacerbated the problem. The good news is that this can be, and hopefully will be, corrected by next weekend.
Although this show isn’t holiday themed, the family friendly script makes it a great Christmas treat for your entire family to attend together.
Cheaper by the Dozen continues at Playcrafters Barn Theatre, 4950 35th Avenue in Moline, Friday and Saturday, December 19 and 20 at 7:30pm and Sunday, December 21 at 3:00pm.
I’m Chris Hicks...break a leg and here’s ho-ho-hoping you enjoy a great holiday season.
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