Theater Review—

Elements Of Great Theater On A Stamford Stage

By June April

STAMFORD — I only regret that I did not have an earlier opportunity to review Tamer Of Horses by William Mastrosimone because it would have allowed for a second viewing.

A production at Stamford TheatreWorks, which wrapped on February 18, brought together the best that theatre can be: a fine cast, an excellent set, superb lighting, great direction and a play that is powerful and meaningful. After leaving Stamford TheatreWorks, one’s instinct was to stop people and encourage them to get tickets for Tamer Of Horses before its last show.

Directed by Geoffrey Owens, there is a definite stamp of a person steeped in the best of Shakespearean tradition. Founder and artistic director of The Brooklyn Shakespeare Company, Mr Owens clearly knows how to mold the actors he works with while drawing from them both an intellectually and emotionally credible character development.

Of course, working with talented actors allows the process to flow, and the three players — Dean Irby, Robin Miles and M. Neko Parham  — all brought in stellar performances.

Tamer Of Horses explores a martial relationship, educational ethics, and the meaning of trust between people. Georgianne and Ty Fletcher are a black couple, educators who have worked very hard to have a small ranch in a largely Caucasian area. They have earned the respect of their neighbors and their private school colleagues.

When a young man, a petty street criminal who has escaped from a reform school, invades their lives, the Fletchers struggle to save him and their own principles and dreams. According to STW artistic director Steve Karp, playwright William Mastrosimone even rewrote some segments of Tamer Of Horses for the Stamford presentation, further developing the husband-wife relationship.

Because they are working in an intimate theater, the creative forces at Stamford TheatreWorks need always to specially design sets that are adapted to that kind of space. For this reason, scenic designer Warren Karp created a set with both an open house and an open barn separated by only a few feet. When one or both was open, the audience was able to sense the openness of the emotional struggles as reflected by the exposed nature of the set.

The outstanding set decoration by Pearl Broms even brought to the audience the odors of the house and barn in the scents of coffee and hay, for instance.

The balance between tension and humor in Tamer Of Horses validates the many awards received by playwright William Mastrosimone. There is a fervor and commitment to this talented man’s works. His 1981 debut, The Wool Gatherer, won him the Los Angeles Drama Critics Award in 1982. The New York Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Play of 1982-83 was presented to him for Extremities, and a mini-series he wrote about Frank Sinatra in 1992 brought him a Golden Globe Award.

Though Stamford TheatreWorks presented Tamer Of Horses in recognition of Black History Month, the play is timeless. It goes to the core of our being, and is another element theatre should always be: a memorable and powerfully meaningful experience.