By Joe Straw
I’m sorry if this offends. I had to do it this way. After all, this is a
blog, and you know it’s all about growing. –
Narrator
“Robert Woodley,
Jr. (Lloyd Pedersen) and Jean Woodley (Rhonda Lord) have been residing there since
God knows when. No, well, since they got
married, twenty somethin’ years ago. He
didn’t make his money, the way his father did, and they were given the house by
his father and his mother, Namoo (Nan Tepper) - funny name.
“And, funny, I
can’t remember the father’s name. He was
about a decent as a fellow could be though.
“Robert Jr.’s
folks moved down the road a piece, as they say in the south, into a little poke
of a place, a little poke filled with money. And Robert, Jr., with his job at the bank, made
waves wanting to establish the family as someone with affluence.
Affluence – Noun - abundance
of money, property, and other material goods; riches; wealth – Dictionary.com
“Things were
going fine until they had their son, Arthird (Justin Huff), well that’s what
everyone called him. His real name is
Robert III, carrying down the legacy, if there was one to carry down, ‘cause, truth
be told, I doubt there’s going to be a IV. He’s kind of slow, and there’s no
female prospects on any kind of horizon you can think of, land, sea or air, if
you cared to think about it, which I don’t. About the only thing he can do is
play with them video games. He hardly looks
up to talk to you when you pass him on the street.
“Arthird is only
there to annoy his sister, Beanie (Ilona Kulinska). They call her Beanie
because one, no one remembers her
name, folks included, and b, that’s
what Arthird called her when she came home from the hospital: ‘She looks like a
bean.’ Cute.
“But I know it’s
really Barbara.
“In any case,
Beanie is graduating high school and wants to go to a very nice college and
waiting for that very letter of acceptance on this Boxing Day. That’s the day after Christmas, in case you
didn’t know. She’s kind of stuck up and never says hi to you at Starbucks,
especially when she’s with her stuck up friends. That’s what money ‘ill do to
you.
“I’ve smelled
trouble in that house for some time now. Robert, Jr. lost his job, no wait a minute;
I think the Feds came in and took his bank away, is what I think.
“Namoo moved
back in after her husband died. I’ll
still can’t remember his name. She’s been
feeling ill for some time now and just got out of rehab or assisted living
where I heard Jean, her daughter-in-law, got in trouble stealing her pain medication,
or the medication that was in the assisted living space. In fact, there’s a lawsuit against Jean and I
don’t know but I hear they will settle or she will go to jail. But you know, white folks don’t go to
jail. Ha, ha, ha.
“Would you push
up the glasses on my nose? My hands are
all tied up. Scratch, right there. Thanks.
“Jean claims
she’s all innocent and Robert, Jr. says their legal bills will be astronomical.
They may have to sell the house, lose their affluence, and live like normal
people, like you and me. Ha. Ha. Ha.
“In the meantime
Jean, who suffers from severe migraines, has to stay out of drug trouble. Lawsuit.
I seen her with a frozen bag of corn slapped
to the side of her head from the window.
That’s the funniest looking thing but, bless her heart, she can’t help
it she’s in so much pain.
“Because of the
lawsuit, Jean cannot help her mother-in-law with her pain medications. For that, they have hired Inez (Christine
Uhebe) who lives with them taking care of Namoo and other things around the
house. Probably folding laundry like I’m doing now.
“And one other
thing, Inez takes care of is that big lug, Arthird. There’s something about
love being said there but I don’t believe it.
She’s one of them “illegals”.
And I don’t see anything good coming out of that. Scandalous.
“One last thing,
I don’t know if this is true or not, because of the change in the tax law,
Namoo has to die before New Years Day if they are to save the inheritance tax
money they would otherwise pay out, and she ain’t looking too healthy right
now. It wouldn’t surprise me if
something terrible would befall on her, by accident, before the year’s up.
“That’s about
all I know.”
“ I’ll give you my card. If you have more information please don’t
hesitate to call.”
“Hmmm, what do I
call you? Agent, detective, Mr.?”
“Any title will do.”
Affluence by Steven Peterson is/was extremely tantalizing. This wonderful new comedy, winner of The
Beverly Hills Theatre Guild’s 2013 Julie Harris Playwrighting Award, is a
fantastic play that has unfortunately closed October 20, 2014 at Theatre 40 in
Beverly Hills.
Larry Eisenberg, the director, has gathered one of the
finest ensembles of the year. One can only marvel at listening to the private
conversations of characters, the day after Christmas, mind you, who whisper and
conspire to dastardly deeds? The
superior actors leave you breathless as you move from one intense moment to the
next. This is a testament to the Eisenberg’s
skillful direction in one of his finest works to date – one in which intimacy,
from this venue, plays an important role.
This show was wonderfully
Produced by David Hunt Stafford. And the celebration begins when one enters the
theatre and appreciates Jeff G. Rack’s Set Design, which is marvelous and sets
the tone for this particular point in time – Boxing Day 2010.
Lloyd Pedersen plays Robert, Jr. and is wonderful in
the role. Robert has lost his job and
has little prospect of getting another because of his age. He hopes someone
dies before midnight so there will not be huge lost in estate taxes, which kick
in after midnight. Ultimately, the
character is a scoundrel – only hoping for the best, meaning the best for him,
including having his sights on the help. It is because of his seditious wants that he
incites the members of the household to do his bidding.
Rhonda Lord is brilliant as Jean. Jean has a lot of problems and one of them is
her addiction to pain medication, which has gotten her into a lot of trouble, as
well as her family. Jean is ruthless,
kind, despicable, loving, and in a lot of pain.
She stops at nothing to get what she wants. Lord is an actress with impeccable skills and
truth on stage. There is a supreme
naturalism to her work as she glides effortlessly from one moment to the next
for which you cannot take your eyes off her for one single moment.
Justin Huff is exceptional as Arthird. There is more
to this character than meets the eye. Arthird still lives at home and has no
job prospects. He is a sad lot. Despite the fact he has his head in video games,
things in life come naturally to him, like the help. He keeps that relationship under wraps until
he is caught. And when he is caught, he
tries to hide the relationship until he feels the time is right to release the
information, what with grandma dying upstairs, and the lawsuit, and the people
who are in pain throughout the house. Huff’s relationships with his sister and
grandmother are impeccable but one hopes for a stronger bond with his mother
and father. Still it is a fantastic role and one in which Huff fills with
exceptional viva.
Ilona Kulinska, who plays Beanie, is an exceptional
actress. She has a natural charm that translates well to the stage. Beanie hopes to get into the college of her
choice and because of her family’s influence, she believes she is
entitled. She is the smartest sibling
and the hopes of her family rides on her getting into a reputable school. Also, Beanie is a bit of a pest about getting
things the way she wants while there are other pressing family problems that
need to be addressed. This is a wonderful role for Kulinska who excels in
dramatic fashion.
Nan Tepper has a wonderful role in Namoo and does a
great job with the role. She is perfect
for this role and one hopes that, in the theatrical sense, she “breaks a leg”
during the course of the run. One hopes that
after the run she is still in one piece. But kidding aside, she was marvelous.
Christine Uhebe is Inez and is perfect for the
role. There is a lot going on with
Inez. She has to fight off the dad,
fight off the mother, take care of the grandmother, and please the son, and
then keep it all under her hat. That’s a heavy load to carry but Uhebe carries
the roll in remarkable style. The scene with the “patches”, done with so much
sincerity and naturalism had me on the edge of my seat.
Richard Garner as plays Arthird but did not perform on
the night I was there.
Larry Eisenberg, the director, does an excellent
job. This is the finest work I have seen
from him to date. There is a moment, near the end, where a voice calls down
from upstairs, which requires impeccable timing and was probably missed on this
night and maybe requires a little misdirection so that we are absolutely not
sure who is calling from upstairs.
Steven Peterson, the writer, has written a magnificent
play with the grand theme of affluence, caring for the aging, and of the unparalleled
perfidy of those left in charge all in the name of keeping a certain lifestyle.
Instead of a “Who
done it?” it’s more like a who’s going to do it?” As all of the characters have a steak in the
game of affluence.
While the
characters in this play are all part of the fait accompli, they are just not
all moving in that direction or at the same pace. This makes the play all the more enjoyable. Not on the surface, but underneath, each
person is striving for a favorable resolution to their own personal problems
caring little for how that gets resolved. Some characters are more despicable than the others. Robert Jr. pleasantly throws out the ideas
without having the audacity to be a physical partner to his thoughts of crime. The others are silent but secretly willing to
physically implement his ideas into action. At the end of the first act, they
watch silently as Jean slowly dials 911. And one can only look to see if the
children are really innocent bystanders. Arthrid dancing with the grandmother seems
like an innocent thing, at first glance. But, looking back, maybe that act was
helping things along.
One of the
interesting things about the ending is that the children don’t come to a
resolution. They are missing from the
final conclusion from a reaction we desperately need (I need.) Certainly one needs a reaction of how things
fell in their favor, or did not fall in their favor at all. That’s just
me. I need a little more closure.
But this takes
nothing away from the show, which I thought was marvelous.
Michele Young
did a marvelous job as the Costume Designer.
Ric Zimmerman
Lighting Design cast a very somber mood for this comedy but one which worked
tragically well, all things considered.
Other members of
this marvelous crew are as follows:
Vesna
Tolomanoska – Assistant Director
Don Solosan –
Stage Manager
Joseph “Sloe”
Slawinski – Sound Design
Michele Bernath
– Dance Choreographer
Tanya Wilkins –
Fight Choreographer
If you ever get
a chance to see a production of this play – Run! Run! Run! – And take someone
nearer to God than thee.
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