Reviewed by Jeanne Hartman
Do you want a recipe for a wonderful evening in the
theater?
Take the story of Chekov’s classic
Three Sisters,
add the backdrop of
Lower Depth Theatre Ensemble presents their inaugural
production,
Three Sisters
after Chekhov, at The Lost Studio Theatre in
Gregg T. Daniel, Artistic Director of Lower Depth,
directs this performance and one can tell that this piece is a true joy to him.
These three sisters are stewarded by Mr.
Daniel with care and tenderness.
He has chosen three talented actresses who can
fill in the details of these wonderful characters.
Diarra Kilpatric, Yvonne Huff and Veralyn
Jones
come together to create three distinctive diverse
sisters who love each other. They seem to be in charge since their father died,
wanting to maintain the family home and the life style in which they were
raised.
Living in the shadow of World War II, these
educated Trinidadian women weave a complex tapestry of a family.
The audience, learn the most about these
sisters when they are alone with each other.
In fact, the men that surround these sisters
know much less about these women then we do since only we have front row seats
to their intimate conversations.
The relationship between the two characters of Helen
and Richard is beautifully depicted by Yvonne Huff and Douglas Dickerman and the
connection between these two characters is touching. The audience can see the
true beauty of this badly timed meeting which blossoms into a relationship that
is also badly timed!
Watching these two actors become these two
characters is truly a pleasure and you find yourself waiting to see them again.
The production is
blessed to have an experienced actress, Veralyn Jones playing the part of the
eldest sister, Alma, and even though the role is sparse, Ms. Jones fills it to
the brim. She brings the necessary tenderness and dignity to the part. Diarra
Oni Kilipatrick is charming as the idealist younger sister Audrey, while Nadege
August as Jean does well in the role of her cheeky character.
For the most part,
the actors give us solid performances and Michael Ralph cast as Lt. Edward Scott
and Miron E. Willis as Francis both make strong choices in their roles, whereas
there is some confusion concerning the choices that Terrence Colby Clemons makes
in his role as the younger brother Peter. Although, the role of Peter might not
be as well developed by the playwright as some of the other characters, Mr.
Clemons’ performance seems somewhat forced.
Playwright Mustapha
Matura, at times telegraphs the plot, the actors and the director give us a fine
performance of this play and it certainly is a piece that the this company can
be proud of producing.
Leon Morenzie should be commended for his preparation
of the accents with the actors.
I find it is always a challenge to combine the
requirement of the accent with making sure that the audience can easily
understand the dialogue.
The cast with Mr. Morenzie’s help accomplished
the necessary balance.
The production staff has created a wonderful set and
costumes to support the story and the actors and Scenic Designer Shaun Motley
and Costume Designer Naila Aladdin Sanders should be congratulated.
The company of
Lower Depth Theatre Ensemble can be proud of their first production and we look
forward to seeing more of what they will be offering to
Theater goers can
find this production through August 8th at The Lost Studio at 130 S. La Brea in
www.lowerdepththeatreensemble.org.
Enjoy!