THE FIRST GRADE WORTH A VISIT TO AURORA
Sydney (l, Julia Brothers) argues with ex-husband Nat (r, Warren David Keith) while their daughter Angie (c, Rebecca Schweitzer) watches in The First Grade. Photo by David Allen
THE FIRST GRADE: Comic drama by Joel Drake Johnson. Directed by Tom Ross. Aurora Theatre Company, 2081 Addison St., Berkeley. (510) 843-4822 or www.auroratheatre.org. Through Feb. 28. . 90 minutes.
JULIA BROTHERS TAKES COOKIE THERAPY TO THE NTH DEGREE
The First Grade is the fully staged anchor production in the Golden Age Project (GAP) that encourages playwrights and directors to explore life in the 21st century. The selection process involves scrutiny by group of local directors, dramaturges and one avid theatre lover/audience member. This 2009 winner, written by Joel Drake Johnson, a noted Chicago author, had an initial staged reading and underwent multiple revisions. The final script is a taut comic drama and under Tom Ross’s deft direction with a superb cast of Julia Brothers, Warren David Keith, Rebecca Schweitzer is another winner gracing the boards at the intimate Aurora Theatre.
The protagonist Sydney (Julie Brothers) is a dedicated middle-age arthritic teacher who loves her work but has a dysfunctional family that includes an alcoholic ex-husband Nat (Warren David Keith) still living in a section of their apartment and a depressed daughter Angie (Rebecca Schweitzer) with her off-stage Ritalin addicted young son. Sydney has a flippant motor-mouth with an unexpected extremely engaging personality. Her physical therapy session with young Mora (Tina Sanchez) degenerates into an interpersonal relationship of emotional dependency that eventually leads to a terrifying dramatic ending.
Before that occurs, Johnson has written stunning dialog that sparkles with dark humor defining the family interaction. Constructed in 8 scenes without intermission it grabs your attention for the entire running time of 90 minutes beginning with an opening monologue of Sydney addressing her first grade class (the audience) from the front of a sunny classroom. In scene three the set seamlessly rotates becoming Sidney’s kitchen (scenic design by Nina Ball) where most of the action takes place. Sydney and Angie verbally tangle further defining the dichotomy of personalities. Sydney’s satiric recriminating banter with Nat, who insists he is a working alcoholic, has a ring of believability and cutting humor. Woven into this turmoil is the suggestion that a cookie from the hidden cookie jar is better than therapy on a psychiatrist’s couch.
This family drama rapidly turns into a melodramatic thriller when Mora shows up at 2 in the morning followed by her estranged husband Jamie (Adrian Anchondo) and Hispanic-speaking father-in-law Rick (Paul Santiago). This penultimate scene bristles with action contrasting with the verbal encounters of the earlier scenes. One can consider Rick as the deus ex machina.
The acting is solidly competent with a great deal of chemistry between the cast. Julia Brothers is a joy to watch with her facial movements, impeccable timing and hand movements as perfect adjuvant to her expressive diction. Rebecca Schweitzer holds her own with her expert change in vocal pitch and body language revealing her depression, torment and rebellion. Warren David Keith, who won a Bay Area critics award as General Borgoyne in Aurora’s staging of The Devil Disciple, displays a totally different style of dramatic sensitivity that matches the aforementioned ladies. It is a play well worth seeing with the caveat that maybe too many hands were involved in making the soup. Problems are advanced and answers are not forthcoming.
Kedar K. Adour, MD
Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com