RECOMMENDED
“The only good I perceive is in beauty. This world gets uglier by the minute, ” says Lotte Schoen in “Lettice and Lovage, ” Peter Shaffer’s paean to bravery and beauty. The Redtwist remount unfolds under Steve Scott’s watchful directorial eye with enjoyable results.
Lettice (Millicent Hurley) is a docent assigned to a boring historical landmark; her penchant for “re-imagining” the house’s history gets her in dutch with Lotte (Jan Ellen Graves), docent supervisor. The two bond over their commitment to history, heritage and rising above “the mere.”
Hurley’s Lettice, left behind by the modern world, is suitably theatrical; Graves’ Lotte, who grudgingly integrates into contemporary times, is phlegmatically bureaucratic. However, the nicest surprises come from the supporting players; Maura Kidwell brings quirky subtlety and timing to her gawky assistant. Jim Morley travels an amusing arc from dismissive lawyer to inspired number-one fan. Watching those two transform is a thing of beauty. (Lisa Buscani)
“Lettice and Lovage” plays at Redtwist Theatre, 1044 W. Bryn Mawr, (773)728-7529, through November 8.
Related Stories
Uneasy Endings: A Review of Going to a Place Where You Already Are at Redtwist Theatre RECOMMENDED As Bekah Brunstetter’s play “Going to a Place Where You Already Are” begins, Roberta and Joe, two dyed-in-the-wool atheists, exchange sarcastic comments as they suffer through the church funeral of a workplace acquaintance of Joe. Trying to sum up his deceased wife’s life in his eulogy, the offstage widower does the best he can, ending with, “That woman could…- Anguish and Rage: A Review of Keely and Du at Redtwist Theatre Jane Martin's 1993 play retains its disturbing realities and takes on some new ones in this production at Redtwist.
- Saints and Poets: A Review of "Our Town" at Redtwist Theatre In a play that is traditionally set in a small, fictional town of Grover's Corners, New Hampshire, Redtwist diversifies the cast … It is a keen and interesting perspective on what life might look like if diverse communities were the norm.
- The America That Never Was: A Review of Death of a Salesman at Redtwist Theatre RECOMMENDED The American Dream—the belief that what fulfills life is prosperity, what determines prosperity is work and that work glazed over with a little sheen of popular appeal guarantees respect—has been languishing the length of its existence. Perhaps never more so than among the so-called millennials, who are said to disdain puritan ideals of toil, reject capitalist faith in private…
- Fathers and Daughters: A Review of King Lear at Redtwist Theatre This production of Shakespeare's patriarchal anxiety dream finds truth in jest.
- Crook on the Hook: A Review of Frost/Nixon at Redtwist Theatre A classic cat and mouse game starring a disgraced former president and a has-been talk show host comes to life at Redtwist Theatre.
