Date: Fri 03-Nov-1995

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Illustration: C

Location: A-15

Quick Words:

Theatre-Players-Six-Degrees

Full Text:

Theatre Review-

Players Meet Guare's Challenge

[Six Degrees of Separation at Town Players/Little Theatre, Newtown]

By Julie Stern

When director Bob Johnson was unable to locate a suitable Oriental rug for his

production of Six Degrees of Separation (at the Little Theatre in Newtown

through November 18, with the possibility of an extended run), he turned to

Town Players chair Ruth Anne Baumgartner, who promptly went home and "wove"

him one herself. It was only stage paint on burlap, but from the audience's

vantage point it looked like a priceless antique.

This mix of clever improvisation and dedication to detail is emblematic of the

exciting things happening at The Little Theatre. The selection of serious

plays rather than outdated fares has attracted a wealth of new acting talent,

and suddenly Newtown is up there with the best of the area's theatre

companies.

John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation is certainly a challenge. The title

refers to the phenomenon of it being such a "small world" you could choose any

two people on Earth - an Alaskan Inuit and a Parisian chef - and, tracing

acquaintances of each one, it would take no more than six people to forge a

chain of connection between them. But that is more a bit of clever repartee

than a central theme to the play.

The story, based on a true-life incident, involves Paul - a young black

hustler who insinuates himself into the lives of several wealthy New York

couples by posing as the son of Sydney Poitier, using the excuse he has just

been mugged to explain his lack of identification, claiming to be a Harvard

student who knows their children, and inviting them to accept bit parts in his

father's forthcoming movie, Cats , as a token of thanks for their hospitality.

The plot revolves around the mystery of Paul's motives and his complex

relationship with one of the women he cons.

To pull this off requires consummate acting and direction. Happily, the Town

Players' Separation gets it from all sides. At the center in Jonathane Lewis

as Paul. Explaining to his bedazzled hosts the complications of a jet-set

existence, quoting passionately from his allegedly stolen thesis on Salinger's

Catcher in the Rye as a primer for latter day assassins, or brazenly

rationalizing his behavior after he has been found out, Lewis' performance is

an exciting tour de force.

As the clever, sophisticated Ouisa Kitteridge in the role made famous by

Stockard Channing, Kelly Mittleman gives an outstanding performance. Working

in verbal and emotional partnership with her art dealer husband Flan,

admirably played by William Swarts, Ouisa recounts the outrageous events of

the previous evening - their infatuation with Paul, which turns to fear and

suspicion when they find him in bed with a naked stranger. Witty and fast

paced, the Kitteridges turn the incident into an entertaining story to dine

out on.

However, as she relives and reconsiders the experience, it leads Ouisa to

question the brittle sterility of life. Supposedly dedicated to beauty and

sensitivity, the pursuit of art for the Kitteridges has turned into a

materialistic high stakes gamble, as they put together syndicates to buy up

famous paintings in order to unload them on "the Japanese." As art has been

relegated to a numbers game, Ouisa realizes, their own life experiences are

being reduced to "anecdotes," devoid of any real significance, safely

recounted at parties.

This is reflected in the vapid narcissism of Ouisa and Flan's Ivy League

children, whose only goal in life seems to be to heap verbal abuse on their

parents' heads. Delightfully played by Steve Affinito, Laura Tortorici, Sean

Sforza, and especially Jimmy Johansmeter, these are the most obnoxious bunch

of overage preppies imaginable.

Paul's insistent demands, coupled with Ouisa's increasingly troubled

self-examination, make this into a play whose underlying questions cast a

somber shadow on its clever, facile surface. In the end, even if you aren't

sure exactly what it all means, you will have been absorbed and hugely

entertained.

Also in the cast worth noting is Amber Anita Peebles as a young would-be

actress whose life is altered by Paul's exploitation, and Mary Poile and Rob

Pawlikowsky as another couple taken in by the Poitier mystique.

Six Degrees of Separation should fill the theatre for the next few weeks, and

hopefully it will extend its run through Thanksgiving so the kids home for

vacation can get to see it as well.

The Town Players perform at the Little Theatre, on Orchard Hill Road in

Newtown. Call 270-9144 for ticket and curtain information.