Reviewer: Kristine Gotham
Venue: Bay City Players
Glass, fragile yet strong, clear yet reflective. Menagerie, a strange or diverse collection of people or things. These are the elements that make up the story of Tennessee Williams’ play, The Glass Menagerie. This “memory play” is a story created by the memories and imaginings of the main narrator/character, Tom Wingfield. With a cast of just 4 characters, Williams is able to create a family dynamic that allows for relationships to develop and personalities to reveal themselves.
Benjamin Hanson portrays Tom Wingfield, a man who still lives at home with his mother and sister, providing financial support while secretly yearning to be free to pursue his own hopes and dreams but also afraid to venture out into the unknown. Hanson’s emotional attachment to the character is evident. His performance displays both Tom’s sense of duty to his family, his desire to do more and his guilt that he feels at the thought of leaving his mother and sister.
Debbie Lake plays Tom’s mother, Amanda Wingfield. Amanda lives her life through her children. She is the dominant figure in their lives, directing their actions with a guilt that only a mother can wield on a person. She constantly reminds Tom that the family could not survive without his income, that his sister needs him because she is so fragile, that his time should be spent thinking only of the family and not his own wants and desires. Lake’s portrayal of Amanda is spot on. Her tone of voice, her body movements, her facial expressions, all work together to give a representation of the domineering mother who is really just scared and lonely and unsure of how to survive in a world that has basically moved on from what she knew before and is unfamiliar.
Tom’s sister, Laura Wingfield is played by Jenn Calay. Calay is a whisper of a girl who displays a vulnerability that is necessary to understand how fragile Laura really is. Calay is able to fully embody Laura’s struggles with a physical limp, quiet voice and gentle movements. As the play progresses, the audience is able to see how Amanda’s strong personality and controlling nature have reduced Laura to a reflection of who she could have been, a smart young woman, with hopes and dreams and abilities. Instead she is incredibly shy, scared of the world around her and what others may think of her, unable to stand up for herself or even see herself as worthy to be noticed.
The final character in this story is Jim O’Conner, played by David Newsham. O’Conner is a co-worker of Tom’s. Tom invites him to dinner, at his mother’s insistence, to introduce him to Laura, in the hopes that they may find that they are suitable companions. Newsham presents O’Conner as a pleasant diversion. He is kind to Laura, interested in what she has to say. He is polite to Amanda even in his discomfort of her forward actions and comments. In Jim we can see what Tom hopes for but we also see that the grass is not necessarily greener on the other side.
The set does not change but by placing the characters in different positions, director Judy Harper is able to bring each scene to life. There is music playing throughout the play providing a context and backdrop that is not only needed but appreciated. Minimal costume changes allow the characters to develop through words and actions rather than their outward appearance.
The Glass Menagerie is a story that embraces audience members and invites them to see life through the eyes of a disillusioned young man. Performances continue at Bay City Players this weekend, Friday, Jan 30 to Sunday, Feb 1. Contact the box office for tickets.