It was just a year ago that Theatre Pro Rata introduced us to something called
simultaneous theater, meaning they did two different plays, at the same time, in the same building, with the same cast! While Chekov's
Three Sisters was playing out on the main stage at the Crane, the minor characters not on stage in that play were doing their own play out in the lobby.
It was a brilliant creative and logistical feat, and something I've never seen before. This year they're returning to that concept, except that it's just one play, but with scenes happening simultaneously in different locations. The site-specific production of
Fefu and Her Friends takes place in the gorgeous historic Searle Mansion near Lake of the Isles. We begin and end the play in the sitting room, and in between the audience is split into four groups and led to four different rooms in the house, where scenes play out
simultaneously with different characters. It's a fascinating character study of a group of women in 1935, brought to such vivid life by this fantastic cast and setting that it feels like we're eavesdropping on these very realistic and unique women.
I highly recommend spending a little time with Fefu and Her Friends, who will be in residence at the Searle Mansion through May 28. Since it's also an event space, performances are weeknights only. They also
rent out a couple of bedrooms via Airbnb, so maybe you could even stay overnight at Fefu's house after the show - what fun!
Fefu and Her Friends was written to be performed in this style, known as a "promenade production." I've been to a few such shows in my theater-going career (most memorably
Mixed Blood's production of Safe at Home at CHS Field), but it's extremely rare, and very cool. As are site-specific productions, which take away the need to imagine we're visiting friends at a stately home, because we actually are. The story centers on Fefu, who invites a group of women to her home to rehearse and plan for a charity event advocating for education. We spend about 90 minutes with these women, which doesn't feel like nearly long enough. There are so many fascinating characters and relationships introduced that this play could easily be turned into a ten-episode Netflix series to explore them more fully. But we get a good idea of who each one of them is in this play, if not their full story, thanks to the clear writing by Cuban-American playwright
María Irene Fornés, who worked extensively off-off-Broadway but whom I've never heard of before. Thanks to Theatre Pro Rata for introducing me to her work and excavating this rare gem and making it shine.
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Fefu (Jessica Wingingham, right) and her friends Christina
(Christy Johnson) and Cindy (Brettina Johnson)
(photo by Alex Wohlhueter) |
Pro Rata's Artistic Director Carin Bratlie Wethern directs the piece and makes everything flow beautifully from scene to scene, conversation to conversation. The transitions are smooth, a ringing bell indicating it's time to move on. There is some sound bleed from other areas, but it just forces you to pay closer attention to where you are. Interim scenes take place in the study, the kitchen, a bedroom, and a lovely terrace, surrounded by the sounds and smells of spring. The bonus is you also get to admire this beautiful historic home with enjoying the story, and the home makes it feel that much more real. The short middle scenes are typically between two characters, or sometimes a monologue, with Fefu walking through all of them at some point. The dialogue shifts from very grounded and realistic, to some more fantastical or lyrical scenes.
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Emma (Gracie Nayman) performs while the group cheers
(Chesa Greene, Nissa Nordland, Christy Johnson,
and Jessica Winingham, photo by Alex Wohlhueter) |
Half of this eight-person cast is new to me, and they're all great, nowhere to hide in this up-close-and-personal intimate setting. Jessica Winingham reigns supreme as Fefu in all her endearing forthrightness; she really sets the tone for the play and absolutely commands the room. Brettina Davis plays her closest friend Cindy, who loves her in spite of herself, with an easy chemistry between the two actors. They're joined by Christy Johnson as the nervous Christina, Jhax Berryhill as the wheelchair-bound Julia, Gracie Nayman as the life-of-the-party Emma, Nissa Nordland as the helpful unassuming Sue, and Nora Sonneborn and Chesa Greene as two women with a past. It's so rewarding to watch all of these actors just
being these characters right in front of us, oblivious to us as they go about their lives.
The characters are dressed in beautiful '30s era dresses that suit each one, from Emma's dramatic sequined top and flowy pants, to Sue's neat suit dress, and everything in between. They use a few choice props, like cocktail glasses, or books, or an eerily relevant needlepoint, but the majority of the scenic design is accomplished by this beautiful house. (Costume design by Andrea Gross, props design by Jenny Moeller.)
