Corrections or additions?
This review by Jack Florek was prepared for the January 2, 2002
edition of U.S. 1 Newspaper. All rights reserved.
Review: `Over the River’
I am a man. I’m doing well for my woman and my
children.
I have a reason for being alive."
This is how Frank tries to explain the concept of "Tengo
Famiglia"
to his ambitious young grandson Nick, in Joe DiPietro’s bittersweet
comedy "Over the River and Through the Woods," now onstage
at The Off-Broadstreet Theater through January 19. But for Nick,
finding
meaning in life by satisfying his family’s needs is a bit myopic.
Like many modern Americans, he is interested in some of the more
tangible
fruits of success — like fame, wealth, and power.
Drama is built on conflict, and one of the more prevalent conflicts
of modern life is balancing the demands of family and career.
DiPietro’s
script isn’t particularly innovative. But Off-Broadstreet turns a
potentially hackneyed storyline on its tail by filling it with some
hardy performances that ring with fresh detail and subdued joy.
Nick Cristano (Brendan Scullin), like many young people scurrying
up the ladder of career success, takes his family for granted. In
this case, his family consists of his four very-Italian grandparents,
Frank and Aida Gianelli (Doug Kline and Carole Mancini) and Nunzio
and Emma Cristano (Marty Sherman and Helen Stafford). He loves them,
but paying them too much attention is a bit of a chore. Like a bottle
stored on a shelf, Nick treats them like they’ll always there when
he needs them. Although the rest of the family has moved away to more
exotic places like Florida or the western United States, Nick has
remained in his hometown of Hoboken, habitually visiting his lovable
grandparents a week for Sunday dinner.
But this particular Sunday is different. Nick has just been offered
a big promotion with his company and is set to announce the good news
to his grandparents. Unfortunately, when they hear that the job is
in Seattle, all four grandparents are less than enthusiastic. They
concoct an unscrupulous, but well-intentioned, plan to keep their
grandson home by setting him up with Caitlin O’Hare (Kristen
Dabrowski),
a lonely sharp-tongued Irish lass.
But when love doesn’t immediately blossom, Nick folds under the stress
of it all, suffering a panic attack in his grandparents’ living room.
While convalescing, Nick gets to know his grandparents more deeply
through a series of heart-felt conversations about the good old days
of their youth and vigor. But after his recovery, Nick continues his
preparation to move west and the grandparents begin to reluctantly
accept the inevitability of Nick’s move.
But Grandpa Nunzio has a secret ace up his sleeve. He has recently
learned he is suffering from advanced cancer and is prepared to inform
Nick of his grave condition, hoping to persuade his grandson to stay.
Ethical or not, the play hinges on the difficult choices that people
must make in the name of love.
Brendan Scullin gives a nice performance as Nick Cristano. It is a
difficult role in that Nick must remain likable to the audience even
as he tries to escape from underneath the weight of his equally
likable
grandparents. Scullin has a knack for wringing the most comedy out
of DiPietro’s script. He also bolsters his performance with a rich
array of good-natured winks, nods, and ironic eye-rolling reminiscent
of Jerry Seinfeld and Dick Van Dyke. His performance does clink and
rattle a bit during some of his character’s more emotionally demanding
moments, but Scullin is certainly a gifted actor.
Although the parts of the grandparents, as written, are nearly
interchangeable,
Doug Kline, Carole Mancini, Marty Sherman, and Helen Stafford do
extract
enough quirky comedy out of their roles to avoid being labeled
stereotypes.
Stafford in particular, performing with a bad cold that left her voice
as raspy as Peter Falk’s Columbo, was able to use her affliction to
add some comic nuance. Kristen Dabrowski in a small part as the
flighty
Caitlin O’Hare has a unique, somewhat detached, stage presence that
injects a sense of foreboding early on into the show.
The fact that the actors are able to transmit their sheer pleasure
of performing, even in the play’s saddest moments, is no doubt due
to the carefully arranged direction of Robert Thick. He is an actor’s
director, and he empowers the cast, allowing them to concentrate on
their craft while he takes care of details like blocking, pacing,
and where to stand in order to be seen in the best light. The back
and forth family banter and easy physical action that run throughout
the play may seem unplanned, but in fact are very difficult to
achieve.
This is a big feather in Thick’s cap.
Most people are not surprised to hear the statistics showing that
Americans are spending more time working and less time with their
families. It seems that one’s sense of family is getting to be one
of those subjects you’re not supposed to talk about in polite society,
like sex, religion, and how much money you make. "Over the River
and Through the Woods" is hardly profound, but it is a fun show,
and it is certainly better than working. Gather up the family,
including
the grandparents, and check it out.
— Jack Florek
Theater , 5 South Greenwood Avenue, Hopewell, 609-466-2766. Weekends
through January 19. $22.50 & $24.
Corrections or additions?
This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com
— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
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