A review by Patrick Shannon, III

Prejudice seems to be an element of human nature that we all possess.  Prejudice is as American as the color and shape of its flag, Old Glory.  But not just Americans, all human beings, are prejudiced.  Anyone who cannot admit this is in denial and an outright liar.  Human beings seem to need a scapegoat to maintain some balance in their very reason for being and their ability to exist.  No matter what our station in life, we seem to need to have someone to look down upon.

Few, but the saints and holy men of history, have been able to escape this great human fault via the destruction of their egos to the belief in a higher power and thereby developing a superhuman compassion for all sentient creatures.  The rest of us are condemned to, even ever so slightly, dislike, condescend to, or just plainly and blindly hate other people we usually know little about and could care less about leaning more.

Spinning Into Butter, the latest play by Rebecca Gilman, deals with this very subject.  Currently running through October 13,2002, at the Canal Place location of The Southern Rep this production directed by Lisa Jo Epstein, can be described in one world, brilliant.

I use this word to describe the production values of the show, not necessarily the play itself.  I liked the play.  It was like a clearly delineated, discussed, and debated course in Love/Hate relations and the subject of racial prejudice.  Every possible perspective of the race relations problem between Caucasians and people of color whether they be called Nu-Yo-Ricans (New York Puertoricans), African Americans, Blacks, Niggers, Negroes, Darkies, Duskies, Jig-a-boos, Jungle Bunnies, Spics, Micks, Kikes, Dagos, etc., etc., will be brought to consciousness as the whole plethora of Caucasoid prejudicial descriptions of non-whites in American culture is made into a piece of drama that works with a searing effect upon the attentive minds of an observant, intelligent, thinking audience.

Ironically, though, there was a group of young people seated behind me and several other critics in the nearly full house the night I attended this play that seemed to lack any knowledge of the proprieties of attending legitimate theatre.  During the entire first act and some scenes of the second, they talked loudly enough to distract others around them.  They got up during the performance and walked past the stage.  After being seated, they opened bags of loud crackly snacks and put on their own little not so subtle piece of performance art.  They entered late as the show was going on, again walking right past the actors on stage and the seated audience.  And they all just happened to be young African Americans and there was the irony of that evening.  Southern Rep must now post a large sign in the lobby describing the correct behavior of attending live theatre.

And it will probably have to be written by white people. So, call me prejudiced.  I am.  I dislike people, no matter what their skin color who dislike me and I find out about it.  I also dislike overt rudeness and stupidity.  There is little if any excuse for this kind of behavior in this kind of setting.  I will accept no excuses for it.  All of which this fine play was about.  And here it was, the alleged elements of prejudicial encouragement seated right there among the mostly honky (white) audience, distracting everyone.

In short, those seated in my section of this theatre were performers in a show within a show, to which the entire audience was witness, but not to the detriment of these greatly talented actors.

In that respect, this production at Southern Rep is a true example of the highest excellence that can be obtained when real talent comes together to create a work of art.

The director, Lisa Jo Epstein (at left), seemed born to create her vision of this play on this difficult little triangular stage.  Not one actor's movement was wasted, nor were they obviously coached except to exact the very best of their abilities as actors.  And true to Ms. Epstein's vision, they did just that.

Lara Grice (at left) in the principal role as the young Dean Sarah Daniels, gave a totally convincing and sensitive performance full of nuance, subtlety and a naturalness that goes beyond just acting.

Gavin Mahlie (Ross Collins) with Lara Guice (Dean Sarah Daniels)

Rudy Cheramie’s performance as Dean Burton Strauss was a feat to behold.  He did his best as the self deluded know it all pompous ass who had pushed himself into a comfortable position in the out-of-touch world of academia.  (We've all met and know his kind.)  Mr. Cheramie gave an outstanding performance as "that type" who wouldn't know his ass from a hole in the ground unless it was the topic of a doctoral thesis; and even then he wouldn't recognize the whole of the hole as his own.  A wonderful acting stint of polished abilities.

The divine Shelley Poncy, another one of our great local performers, and what a role for her talents, perfectly garbed in the proper working skirt and jacket of a professional academic, she became her role in every moment on stage as the nefarious, conniving, middle-aged Dean Catherine Kenney.  A non-stop dyke-look-alike in dress and manner, although not a lesbian character in this play, she slammed many a door, and stopped many a moment in the play with just the barest movement of her head, or the slightest smile on her lips.  She played a real snake among the lilies with great style, pomp, and vigor.  (We've all met her kind on campus also.  They never die.  The are reborn via pathogenesis. Like certain species of aphids, which also suck the life sap from living organisms to survive.)  What a knock out role for this fine actress.  I can't say it's one of her best, because she never does a role without zest, vigor and an honesty of interpretations that leaves one breathless.  And in Spinning Into Butter, damned if she didn't do it again.

Jerry Lee Lieghton proved that there are no small roles for fine actors.  His portrayal of Mr. Meyers, was unobtrusively dynamic, not an easy phrase to figure out, but not an easy acting technique. Only the best can make a small role into a big one, and Mr. Leighton does no less as the compassionate and likeable Mr. Myers.

Kalon Thibodeaux, is another young actor with a natural talent. His role as Greg Sullivan, the sly opportunistic student determined to show his "energetic and true" compassion for minorities as well as add something regarding his "activism" to his resume that will, after graduation make him seem a real leader with keen sense of justice for all when he pursues his law career, made not a false move nor did he have a wrong moment on stage.  His effective acting talent was a delight to witness as he created the role of a secretly self aggrandizing little snit who does, however, find some redemption in the end.

The one set required by this play was a well done interpretation of Dean Sarah Daniels'(Lara Grice)office in a small college in Vermont attended by mostly white students.  It was a solid piece of well conceived craftsmanship, lending itself well to the many door slammings necessitated by the play or the director's vision.  Not a single detail was lacking in the realistic effect of this design.  I saw, in its apparent solidity an effect of permanent strength and power, a symbol of the very subject of the play, the solidity and manifestly indestructible element of white prejudice that exists everywhere.  I mention all this because it must be nearly impossible to conceive and create so well attuned and so fine a set on the somewhat irregular staging area of this small theatre.  When it's done this effectively, it becomes a memorable feat.  High praise to set designer, David Korins, and his entire technical crew.

Lighting designer, Bill Liotta's lighting was excellently conceived with nuance and balance throughout.

Costume designer, Elizabeth Parent, is another of our great local talents that needs no introduction to this critic.  She has never dressed a show poorly in my opinion; her sense of color and design, and her costume period research, always adds that exactly correct touch to any of her many shows.  But in this show, she really hits the mark.  There is a simplicity of perfection in her vision for the character’s costumes that speaks highly of her always excellent understanding of good theatre design.

Especially prominent in her creative vision was the costume conceived for the character of Shelly Poncy (Dean Catherine Kenney).  And whoever did her hair must have known the character in another life.  A perfectly conceived ensemble that made Ms. Poncy’s character blast it’s way into my memory.  The same can be said for the hairstyles, beards, mustaches, and dress of all the other characters. Always, right on the mark!

Sound by Paul Bayer was unique and effective in it's allusion perhaps to non-white music played in a mostly white inhabited world.

Heather Stickney, as Stage Manager, must have had a hard job working with such talented people and the end result was her own touch of professionalism to the final product, a show of excellence in stage management abilities.

This production of controversial authoress, Rebecca Gilman's (at left) Spinning Into Butter, was a great feat of bright theatrical talents culminating in a blazing evening of true drama.  And that’s what fine drama is all about!