Tonight was opening night of Sam Shepard’s True West, directed by Emily
Gisler. The venue was Barnstormers: Oregon’s oldest continuing community theatre
located on Evelyn Avenue in Grants Pass.
As I entered the main door to the theatre I was immediately struck by
the intimacy of the venue. With a
seating capacity, which I counted as just under 100 and a very narrow walkway
dividing the audience from the stage, one is able to become totally immersed in
the story.
Seats were padded with arms and quite comfortable. A unique feature was the food and beverage
service provided before the opening curtain and during intermission. A selection of red and white wines was
complimentary as well as coffee and water.
Also offered on a complimentary basis was a variety of foods which
included a mozzarella, cherry tomato and basil salad, various chips, fruit plates
that included grapes and sliced apples, and desserts.
The play itself was unique in the fact that the two main
male characters, which were brothers in the play, were double-cast. Every other performance they switch
roles. There is no way not to ask
yourself how long it took the actors to memorize both parts.
The story line was a character study that examined the relationship
between two brothers over the span of three days. One brother a successful family man and the
other a nomadic drifter, each brother represented a different product of the
family. By the end of the story their
roles became reversed and each man found himself admitting that he had somehow
always wished he were in his brothers shoes.
The performance comprised 2 acts with 9 scenes and ran an
hour and 20 minutes, including a 15-minute intermission. Dylan O’Hara and Stewart Towle played the two
brothers, Lee and Austin. The other two actors included Laura Erb who
played Mom, and Davey Kashuba who
played Saul Kimmer. Pre-purchased
tickets were $15.00 per person. For further
information check them out at http://www.barnstormersgp.org/
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