Ever since Director Kathy Graham’s appearance on a Footlights podcast episode back in January, I have been eagerly awaiting her production of The House of Blue Leaves by John Guare at Playcrafters Barn Theatre and OMG was it worth the wait!
The play was first performed Off Broadway in 1971 and garnered acclaim from the Drama Critics Circle and its 1986 Broadway revival brought in several awards that included 4 Tonys and 3 Drama Desk Awards. It was described as “at once dark and zany…presenting timeless dramatic themes…the power of celebrity, the desire for fame, and the longing to escape to a better life.”
The plot is difficult to describe so I will defer to Wikipedia’s: “The play is set in Sunnyside, Queens, New York City, New York, in 1965, on the day Pope Paul VI visited. The black comedy focuses on Artie Shaughnessy, a zookeeper who dreams of making it big in Hollywood as a songwriter. Artie wants to take his girlfriend Bunny with him to Hollywood. His wife Bananas is a schizophrenic and destined for the institution that provides the play's title. Their son Ronnie, a GI scheduled for deployment to Vietnam, has gone AWOL. Three nuns are eager to see the pope and end up in Artie's apartment [where] a political bombing mistakenly occurs.” I might add that there are also a deaf fiancé, a man in a white coat and the Military Police.
I hesitate to reveal any more than that skeletal description because you really MUST experience it for yourself to truly appreciate its humor and its pathos. It’s a roller coaster ride you will not soon forget.
Taking on the role of Artie Shaughnessy is veteran of many local venues, Eric Teeter, who gives a wonderfully nuanced performance that has you in his corner right up to and through the surprise ending. In the role of Bunny is new-to-Playcrafters, Leslie Day, who explodes onto the stage with dynamism that puts the Energizer Bunny to shame. She just keeps going and going and going. As the loony Bananas Shaughnessy is Ashley Hoskins whose spot on performance elicits both laughter and sympathy. These actors are a theatrical triple threat and the supporting cast backs them up in spades.
I can’t end this review without mentioning the amazing set of a seedy apartment with a large window opening onto a muted New York skyline. The talented hand of Jake Ladd is obvious in both design and construction in that this appears to be the second revision of his set for Harvey last February.
The House of Blue Leaves continues at Playcrafters Barn Theatre, 4950 – 35th Avenue in Moline, Friday and Saturday, May 24 and 25 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 26 at 3:00 p.m.
I’m Chris Hicks…break a leg.