The Browning Version
The play takes place in Mr. And Mrs. Crocket’s school apartment on a July evening at about 6.30PM. From the way the set is staged you can clearly see that the main characters are well educated people of a higher social class. There is a lot of books neatly stacked in bookshelves as well as on Andrew Crocket’s desk. Nice crystal dishes and plates prepared for a dinner. There is a lot of texture on sofas and walls that evokes a feeling of a place that has not changed in years. Lighting created a very intimate atmosphere. Small lamps and a chandelier over the dinning room table added to the picture of Andrew Crocket’s lonely life surrounded by only his books and thoughts. The lights were somehow soft and it helped to divide the stage in sections (the library, the office and the dinning room). There were no sound effects in this play other than the voices of the actors and the sounds they made, which in contrast, did create effects in terms of setting up the mood (when Mrs. Crocket was putting plates on the table while being upset you could clearly hear the sound of plates hitting each other emphasizing her mood). The sound of pouring wine/whiskey made for a pause in between conversations. Costumes were surprisingly good. They were almost like an another character in the play. Mr. Crocket’s suit was (up)tight and well fitted as his attitude, his wife’s costume brought a light into the play (the color was somehow settled - dark blue - but the cut and the way she worked it made the scenes more uplifting). I like the costume that the pupil visiting Mr. Crock was wearing, obviously one or two sizes larger which really made him look school-ish! Acting was fine, fine as a fun, intelligent, nifty, and energetic. I say Bruce French who played Andrew Crocket was amazing, his voice and how he showed the sadness was two thumbs up! Orson Bean, playing Dr. Frobisher was uplifting, funny and somehow likable although he was the bad guy. Sally Smythe as Mrs. Crocket’s wife was funny, flirty and annoying at the same time. Overall impression for me was a great 80 minutes (with no intermission), lovely theater, a touching story and wonderful cast. I left completely satisfied.
The Browning Version is playing at the Pacific Resident Theatre.
Posted in: on Tuesday, November 3, 2009 at at 5:01 PM
