from
Albany Times Union...
Curtain Call keeps 'Folly' on solid footing
By
Michael Eck Fourth of July,
1944, Lebanon, Mo. A band toots in the town
gazebo. The moon shines on the water. And
two people talk in a boathouse across the
way. It's Lanford Wilson's "Talley's
Folly," of course, the second entry in
the playwright's classic Talley family trilogy.
The
play is being given a solid production by
Curtain Call Theatre,
even if February does seem an odd time to
present a show so anchored in summer. If "Talley's
Folly" is a romance, it's a hard-won
romance, and all the more interesting for
it. Curtain Call regular Howie Schaffer plays
Matt. Regular patrons will be able to guess
at some of his interpretation before they
sit down. He handles the role well enough,
but his reading could use more subtlety and
shading. He gets Matt's occasional fever pitch
down fine, but has trouble negotiating the
quieter moments. And, as noted, it is similar
in dispatch to some of his other Curtain Call
portrayals. Kathleen Carey, by contrast, keeps
becoming a richer actress. Her vocal pitch
has a limited range, but she invests it with
layers of emotion. The spinster-ish Sally
is a confused woman, torn up by her feelings,
her secrets and her family. Carey gives in
to that confusion, and she wears it on her
face with a furrowed brow and heavy eyes that
never feel false. Director Steve Fletcher
keeps his small cast moving about Malachi
Martin's boathouse stage set, perhaps too
much so. One occasionally wishes the two would
just light. But Fletcher does sit them down
for the play's most revealing, important sections.
