Axis Company presents
A What Man Theatre Company production
By Marc Palmieri
Directed by George Demas
June 22 - July 16, 2006
Thursday - Saturday at 8pm & Sunday at 6pm
(Please note: there is no performance Sunday,
June 25 and opening night is Monday, June 26 at 8pm)
Information & Reservations (212) 807-9300
Adults $18; Seniors/Students $13
In the shadow of World War II, architect William Levitt envisioned a new
American town in a Long Island potato field. After an extensive and spirited
development effort, thousands of Levitt "Cape Cod" homes were built with
scrap materials from the War. Each carefully modeled home was designed to
serve the needs of the modern family, and soften the impact of the modern
War. They were sold for $8,000 to battle-weary GIs with the hope of a new
life–and as a means of forgetting the recent past...
It is nearly half a century later. The Maddigan family spans three
generations of New York City firefighters. When Kevin, the grandson of a
combat veteran, returns early from yet another college, he learns that his
deeply troubled sister is about to be married. Inspired with a renewed hope
of reconciliation and happiness, (and a final departure from a painful past)
he attempts to reconcile the family with the abusive father who left them
years before. Amidst the thin walls of their Levittown home, the members of
this beleaguered family are forced to confront a concealed history, and the
failures of the tidy truths they have desperately tried to embrace.
Equity Approved Showcase featuring *Brian Barnhart, *Curzon Dobell, *Joe Fuer, *Michael Laurence, *Margo Passalaqua, *Cecelia Riddett, *Ian Tooley, *Joe Viviani (*Member of Actors' Equity Association)
PRAISE FOR LEVITTOWN:
LEVITTOWN
at Axis Theatre
A somewhat traditional offering from the usually more experimental Axis Company, Levittown manages to satisfy with a solid script, sharp cast, and precise direction.
From young playwright Marc Palmieri comes a drama about a working-class family in the titular Long Island village. The action is focused on the marriage of the daughter, Colleen, from the point of view of her brother, Kevin. Colleen's putative husband, Brian, is the sort of man most parents would approve of–certainly Colleen's nervous mother, Kathleen, does. But estranged and apparently deranged dad Richard is less than enthralled. The conclusion spins around Kevin's odd choice to inform Richard of the wedding and his willingness to save his sister's ceremony at all costs.
It's not exactly an original setup, notwithstanding some unusual war flashback scenes involving the family patriarch, Edmund. Nevertheless, Palmieri's characters are quite full, and the details of gritty Long Island life come vividly alive through exacting detail and a naturalistic tone. The scenes involving Richard are especially riveting, written with sharp, cutting dialogue that keeps you on edge.
Palmieri should be thrilled with the job done by director George Demas. His entire cast is extremely polished and truthful. As Kevin, Brian Barnhart is charming, appropriately awkward, and very comfortable. Margo Passalaqua is sympathetic as Colleen, and Cecelia Riddett is remarkably real as Kathleen. Joe Viviani has a big presence as Edmund. Curzon Dobell is intense, frightening, and oddly familiar as Richard in one of the performances of the season.
It all fits neatly within production designer Kate Aronsson-Brown's perfectly adorned, somehow foreboding Long Island house.
Reviewed by Michael Lazan
Published on BackStage.com on July 3, 2006.
Copyright 2006 VNU Business Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
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