If you were in the audience for the Jeff Norton Theater Awards last month at the Palladium, you know theater is thriving on both side of Tampa Bay. You can now add “A Simple Theater” to the mix.
I caught the company’s debut show, Death and the Maiden, Friday night at the Studio at 620. ” Simple” is an appropriate moniker if by simple you mean great acting, powerful (and timely) play selection and a set that does its job and nothing more.
It’s a cliché, but I was literally on the edge of my seat for 90 minutes (the show runs with no intermission). Roxanne Fay – one of our best actors – was throwing off sparks as the victim of torture and rape who may or may not be confronting her attacker years later. Steve Garland, as her husband, and Giles Davies, as the possible torturer, matched her intensity.
The pacing was relentless and the actors stayed in character even during the blackouts. I had to remind myself at times to breathe.
The new company is the brainchild of actors Gavin Hawk and Meg Heimstead. Hawk, an Eckerd professor currently starring in Barefoot In The Park at American Stage, directed the show.
I’m a theater lover, not a theater reviewer, so instead of throwing out more theater-critic clichés, I’ll just say congratulations to this exciting new company and I’ll tell you something very simple – don’t miss this show!
For showtimes and more details visit www.studio620.org.
1 comment
Thank you, Paul!!!