Performance Review- Caroline Totty

Caroline Totty

December 7, 2015

Whitman

Performance Review

            On December 6, 2015 I went to Lafayette High School to watch the 2:00 performance of SCAPA’s The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde. The Importance of Being Earnest is a trivial piece of satire based in the late Victorian England. Its outrageous plot portrays the absurdity of upper class in England at the time and will no doubt make any viewer laugh.

            This performance, directed by Paul Thomas, was overall a well-performed and entertaining take on the play. Algernon was played by Scott DiMeo, Jack by Shelby Nance, Lady Bracknell by James Carter, Gwendolen by Sarah Morgan, Cecily by Abigail Tick, Miss Prism by Bennett Creech, Rev. Chasuble by Cooper Fitch, Lane by Joshua Dhir, and Merriman by Jared Sayers. The two lead rolls, Algernon and Jack, were both acted with a wonderful mix of enthusiasm, drama, and seriousness causing the play to appear very professional. The two boys knew when to over dramatize their lines and facial features to evoke laughter from the crowd and they knew when to draw it in and act more serious. There was never once a hesitation to remember lines or a stutter in the fast paced speaking. Although, sometimes I struggled to understand what was being said because of the heavy British accents the actors adopted and how quickly they were speaking at times. Luckily, I just read this play for English and am familiar with the plot or else I fear I might’ve been a bit lost in the beginning especially when it was the scene between just Jack and Algernon. They were oftentimes speaking rapidly and facing each other so much that their voices were not projecting to the crowd and their dialogue was getting lost. However, as the play continued it improved and the issues vanished.

            While the two lead roles were what seemed to be the backbone of this performance, Lady Bracknell is who really stole the show in my opinion. Played by a boy, this woman’s role was fulfilled beyond my wildest expectations. James Carter fully embraced the part of a middle-aged woman whose face was caked in makeup and undoubtedly made the whole performance ten times funnier. His accent he used was so humorous the audience couldn’t help but laugh at every word and grand gesture that was made.

            The biggest critique I would have of this performance was the chemistry between Abigail Tick who played Cecily and Scott DiMeo who played Algernon. Yes, they are engaged in the play and meant to act in love, but what was happening between them was to the point where I felt uncomfortable. While the other actors and actresses were several feet apart from each others faces while staring into their partner’s eyes, these two were not even an inch from each other. They had their noses touching and were kissing throughout the whole last half of the play. While I understand they were suppose to be in love it just made me very uncomfortable to have to sit there and watch that for so long.

            Besides that the play was fantastic. The costumes were just as I imagine people of the Victorian Era would have dressed. The set was nothing eccentric, but it got the job done. Overall I would rate this performance somewhere around an 8 out of 10.