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Peer Reviews
Hot Tin Roof Sizzles
at Clarksville Little Theatre Entire contents copyright © 2008 A.S. Waterman. All rights reserved.
Clarksville Little Theatre continues its venture into serious theatre with a scorching rendition of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. How ironic that its entire first weekend was cancelled because of snow! And how unfortunate, as this is a production that should be seen. A Pulitzer Prize winner in 1955, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is a dark but seductive tale of greed, lies and betrayal in a wealthy southern family. Patriarch Big Daddy is dying -- who will inherit, in a disjointed family where cruelty is the norm, love a distant memory and kindness nowhere to be found? Building upon Williams' landmark success with The Glass Menagerie (1945) and A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), the play shocked 1950s audiences with its frank portrayal of sexuality, alcoholism and the ultimate taboo -- gastrointestinal cancer -- while creating an array of fascinating characters seething with pent-up emotion. Translating such intensity onto the Clarksville stage is no small challenge, but director Gary Tipton does a commendable job. Although understated at times, this production "gets" the power of the play and its characters, aided by some very strong performances. Kate Bringardner's Maggie sizzles, as she channels a deep southern spoiledness into Maggie's desperate attempts to seduce her own husband, Brick. Kevin Temple plays the crumbling alcoholic Brick with a sultry, stubborn sexiness that is a good match for Maggie's own. Craig Nolan Highley skillfully depicts Brick's brother Gooper -- and a culture in which a corporate lawyer may be named Gooper -- a man who does everything right but whose best is never good enough to win his father's love. Above all, Gary Crockett's luminous Big Daddy reigns supreme in the hulking millionaire's predatory domineering presence and his abject terror of the disease that he knows full well to be eating away his life from the inside out. The Clarksville production survives an overly long first act (restructuring the original three acts into two) to reach a fiery intensity in the second, making the final scenes unforgettable. This review is being rushed to publication after Wednesday's preview performance in the hope that it will help to spread the word about the show's now compact, one-week run. Catch the Cat while you can. You'll be glad you did.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof March 13 - 16, 2008 Clarksville Little Theatre Posted March 13, 2008
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