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The current production by the SpeakEasy Stage Company is the New England Premiere of the praiseworthy "Grand Concourse," written by Heidi Schreck and Directed by Bridget Kathleen O'Leary. The play uses four actors, and is set in a Catholic parish soup kitchen in the Bronx. The themes of this drama center on issues of struggling with faith and forgiveness.
Shelley (the marvelous Melinda Lopez) is a nun who has gotten out of the habit of praying, her faith having grown cold as she struggles with the discouraging task of running a soup kitchen with few resources and a clientele that stretches her and her staff. While she feeds the hungry, she is suffering from spiritual anorexia. Family issues weigh on her heart. In order to try to force herself to pray to an ever-distant God, she sets the timer on the microwave to try to get through at least a minute of petition and intercession. She is able to pray sincerely only for "justice for the immigrants"! The microwave is not enough to reheat her faith or her sense of vocation. Events in the play, triggered by her troubled relationship with volunteer, Emma (Ally Dawson), prove to be the last straw, and she confronts her lack of faith in a bold and courageous denouement.
Teenager Emma arrives, asking to volunteer in the kitchen. She is hard to figure out, and eventually shares the news that she is in treatment for cancer. This revelation changes the dynamic of her flirtatious relationship with Oscar (Alejandro Simoes), the janitor/handyman for the parish. Emma's brazen seductions of Oscar create problems in his relationship with his fiancee. Emma's cancer news proves to be only the beginning of the surprises and complications she interjects into the soup that is the relationships among the soup kitchen denizens. Initially, she appears to be a saviour, offering ideas for getting jobs for some of the regulars in the soup line, especially the quirky Frog (Thomas Derrah), but things spin out of control as her failure to follow through has tragic consequences.
The writing is complex and layered. Each character has positive and negative attributes that present challenges to the other three members of this cast. Sister Shelley is faithful but cold. Frog is charmingly nerdy but volatile. Emma is eager but duplicitous, and Oscar is grounded but vulnerable to being misled. Questions are raised about who is worthy of trust - God, one another? And ultimately, the daunting question hangs in the air: "Are some deeds and some people beyond forgiveness?"
Mr. Derrah's character of Frog is memorable as a jumpy and edgy combination of Danny Devito and Woody Allen. Ms. Dawson navigates well the rough waters of appearing to be both needy and conniving. Mr. Simoes creates a very sympathetic Oscar, torn between lust for Emma and true love for Rosa. Ms. Lopez is spectacular as Sister Shelley. She reveals her barely contained rage and existential despair in the aggressive way she peels potatoes to reveal the rawness under the surface. Emma's multiple transgressions serve to peel away the surface spirituality that Shelley is struggling to maintain, and reveals the raw soul bleeding under the surface. Director O'Leary has these four gifted actors engaged with one another in ways that keep the audience in rapt attention as the action of the play unwinds at a steady pace.
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| Alejandro Simoes as Oscar Melinda Lopez as Sister Shelley Ally Dawson as Emma Thomas Derrah as Frog "Grand Concourse" by Heidi Schreck SpeakEasy Stage Company Calderwood Pavilion Through April 1st Glenn Perry Photography |
The always resourceful Jenna McFarland Lord has created a very realistic set - a working soup kitchen that transports us to the Bronx, with able assistance from Lighting Designer Karen Perlow, Sound Designer Lee Schuna, and Costume Designer Chelsea Kerl.
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| Alejandro Simoes as Oscar Thomas Derrah as Frog Melinda Lopez as Sister Shelley "Grand Concourse" by Heidi Schreck SpeakEasy Stage Company Calderwood Pavilion Through April 1st Glenn Perry Photography |
This play is beautifully written and superbly well acted. The subject matter is deep and thought-provoking. It would be unforgivable to miss this excellent production - a venial sin at the very least! Through April 1st at the Calderwood Pavilion.
SpeakEasy Stage Website
Enjoy!
Al
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