The Trip To Bountiful
Written by Horton Foote
Directed by JoAnn Montemurro
at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark (map)
thru Nov 17 | tickets: $36 | more info
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Well worth a heartfelt journey to this American classic
Raven Theatre presents
The Trip To Bountiful
Review by John Olson
Carrie Watts, the lead character in Horton Foote’s 1953 play, is one of the great roles of contemporary theater and “award bait” for an actress in her “golden years.” Geraldine Page won an Oscar for the role in the 1985 film version, Lois Smith swept all the off-Broadway awards for her 2005 portrayal and just this year, Cicely Tyson won the Tony for playing Mrs. Watts. We have to admire any actor willing to risk comparisons to those performances, given that many local theatergoers may have seen not only the film but also Lois Smith’s reprise of her performance when the Goodman remounted that production in 2008. Actress Millicent Hurley Spencer and director JoAnn Montemurro have taken up that challenge at the non-Equity Raven Theatre, and though it’s (understandably) not in the league of those productions mentioned above, it’s a loving and moving interpretation of this heartfelt and thoughtful play.
Jessie Mae wants a good deal more than that. She’d really like to be a movie star, it seems, or at least go to the movies once or twice a week. She has little patience for Carrie and is no way shy about showing that. Katz plays her with bravado, driving the action and tension of the first act, set in the Watts’ little Houston apartment. Katz’s performance is broad – and entertaining – as director Montemurro has chosen a generally bright interpretation for the piece. While Katz is very watchable and comical in her cluelessly self-centered Jessie Mae, she borders on commenting on her character rather than playing her. I’d have preferred to see a more shaded performance – one that could show us how Jessie Mae believes her desires and actions are completely justifiable. As Carrie’s son, Ludie, Boone took a while to settle in to his role. Like Carrie, Ludie holds a lot inside himself. He’s a broken man, only recently back at work after an illness of two years, and lacking the gumption to stand up to either his mother or his shrewish wife. By the final scene, though, Boone is fully convincing as a man that finally finds some strength and ability to move on with life in his present circumstances. Jen Short and Larry Carani both do nice work as the sympathetic traveler and the sheriff Carrie meets on her trip.
The always-high production values at Raven are maintained here, even with the challenges of a three-set play on a stage that doesn’t appear accommodating for scene changes. Ray Toler’s set includes a detailed-enough apartment for the first act, nicely and accurately dressed by Mary O’Dowd’s props. In the third act, the set includes a beautiful, evocative creation of the dilapidated farmhouse and the farm against an early morning sky. Kate Murphy’s costume designs anchor the time and place as early 1950’s Texas.
The Trip to Bountiful is a worthy production for Raven’s focus on modern, primarily American, drama. Foote packs so much into this short piece. There are not only the challenges of aging and of living with aging parents, but also the exploration of the changes from primarily rural life to urban life that occurred in the south later than most of the US. In Carrie’s youth, people lived off the land and, while times were often hard, there was dignity and independence in being landowners rather than employees, as her son Ludie is now. Montemurro and cast communicate all these themes clearly and with heart, and their production is worthy of either a first visit or a return trip to this fine American play.
Rating: ★★★
The Trip To Bountiful continues through November 17th at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark (map), with performances Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sundays 3pm. Tickets are $36, and are available by phone (773-338-2177) or online through their website (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at RavenTheatre.com. (Running time: 2 hours 20 minutes, includes an intermission)
Photos by Dean La Prairie
artists
cast
Millicent Hurley Spencer (Carrie Watts), Michael Boone (Ludie Watts), Eleanor Katz (Jessie Mae Watts), Jen Short (Thelma), Larry Carani (Sheriff, Houston Ticket Man), Justin Castellano (2nd Houston Ticket Man), Conor Clark (Harrison Ticket Taker, Traveler).
behind the scenes
JoAnn Montemurro (director), Michael Menendian (producing artistic director), Kate Masiak (stage manager), Justin Castellano (asst. stage manager, master electrician), Ray Toler (set design, scenic art), Gene Andrew Franco (scenic art), Diane Fairchild (lighting design), Kate Murphy (costume design/construction), Mary O’Dowd (properties, set dressing), Luke Sword (sound design), Andrei Onegin (technical director), Jen Short, Sam Reynolds, Sam Van Loon (assistant electricians), Conor Clark (assistant to the technical director), Liz Fletcher (hair stylist), Dean La Prairie (photos)
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