Spotlight Theater - Virginia Woolf Review

Who's Afraid of
Virginia Woolf?

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Theatre critic Don Snider from the Southtown Star reviews our show below:

Theater: 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'

Spotlight shines with riveting drama performance

March 1, 2007

By Don Snider

Who's afraid ...?
Not Spotlight Theatre.

This small community theater group isn't afraid to stage challenging works seldom seen on local stage.
The last time Firstlook saw one of its productions, "The Graduate," it was obvious Spotlight lacked the resources to carry out such a play.

Besides, "The Graduate" (the film that boosted Dustin Hoffman to stardom) has subtleties that don't transfer well to live stage.

However, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" has few such subtleties.

After all, there's nothing subtle about Martha snarling at George, "You S.O.B." (without the abbreviations, of course).

Spotlight not only could handle "Virginia Woolf," but on opening night at the Steger Community Center, it proved it could perform this erudite, though crude, play as well as any professional production company.

There are two more performances, Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.

It's highly recommended for anyone who appreciates serious drama.

"Virginia Woolf" stars Rick Baiker as George, Andrea Fleming as Martha, Jeff Gamlin as Nick and Jane Cox as Honey in the roles performed by Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, George Segal and Sandy Dennis in the controversial 1966 film.

As directed by Cox, Spotlight made this play absolutely riveting.

They are performing it in small, but very comfortable room at the Steger Center. One end is set up as George and Martha's living room with a couch, chair, bar and stereo.

The other end is seating for an audience of only 25 or so. It's perfect. The audience is virtually a guest in the room, just as Nick and Honey are.

"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" opens with George and Martha returning at 2 a.m. from a social put on by Martha's father, the president of a small college. George is a professor of history.

"What a dump," Martha says of the house, but then announces they will have guests arriving soon.

"Look, Martha, it's late and I'm tired," says George.

Nick, a new faculty member who has barely met George and his wife, Honey, arrive. But instead of being cordial, George and Martha unload a relentless barrage of insults at each other.

"I told you we shouldn't have come," Honey says to Nick as both are obviously unnerved.

The audience at this point may be wondering if it wants to eavesdrop on almost three hours more of this. But it soon becomes too compelling.

Eventually the foursome spill out all their frustrations, and surely many in the audience start to find their actions palpable.

George feels burned out at never having advanced in the history department. And Martha won't let him forget it.

He tells Nick, "It's not easy being married to the daughter of the college's president."

Nick, however, has no such trouble with Honey; she's so deferential. But she can't hold her liquor either, and eventually Nick and Honey reveal frustrations over being childless.

George then says that he and Martha have a son, a revelation that sets up much of the conclusion of the drama.

Spotlight's acting is simply superb. All four characters perform an incredible amount of dialogue that involves the full range of emotional swings.

They're funny, sad, pathetic, obscene, almost violent, touching and empathetic. But always real.

Baiker in just a few years, starting with a small role with the Palos Village Players, has become one of the most talented performers in area community theater.

Cox cited Fleming, a fellow on- and off-stage veteran with the old Matteson troupe, as her "hero" for jumping into the Martha role after a woman originally cast had to drop out because of a family illness.

Fleming mastered the role and all its nuances in just five weeks!

Meanwhile, Gamlin and Cox have made the Spotlight Theater the outlet for their love of live theater.

With "Virginia Woolf," they've shown they're not afraid to tackle anything.

Bravo to the entire Spotlight cast and crew."

-Don Snider