Eugene weekly., August 12, 2004, Page 30, Image 30

www.hcexpeditions.com
822-8288 or
1-888-461-7238
Come see us at
Belknap Hot Springs Resort
BY SHARLEEN NELSON
d & Scenic
Wil
Review
High Country
Expeditions
Rafting Trips
Upper McKenzie • Upper Klamath
Cal-Salmon • Rogue
& other NW Rivers
Summer Rafting Special
Rafting Coupon
10% OFF 1/2 Day
Rafting Trips
OR
$40.00 Sun. & Wed.
Rafting Trips
This coupon must be presented at the time of
booking. Only valid for McKenzie Rafting Trips.
10% off will only be applied to adult rates. Not
to be combined with other specials.
• Group & Student Discounts
• 1/2 to multi-day adventures
• Relaxing scenic floats
• Fun-filled family trips
• Class 4 & 5 adventures
• Trips run 7 days a week
• Located on the McKenzie River
• Locally owned & operated
Big Mama (Nancy Boyett)
comforts Maggie
(Shannon Fabry as Mae
(Emily Gilbert) looks on.
It’s All Relative
Cat On a Hot Tin Roof explores family dynamics at VLT.
Get
a
Naked
P i n o t
Wines made from certified organic grapes. Available at fine
wine shops, restaurants and grocers throughout Lane County.
Beaverton, OR. 503-649-0027 • www.coopermountainwine.com
30 AUGUST 12, 2004
T
he Very Little Theatre culminates
its 75th season with the emotional-
ly charged Tennessee William’s
drama Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, a Pulitzer
Prize-winning drama that focuses on the
dynamics of a dysfunctional Southern
family and explores a variety of tense
themes including alcoholism, human fail-
ings, family rivalry, sexuality, mendacity
and avarice.
On a set adorned with ornate, yet taste-
ful, décor befitting an affluent plantation
owner’s home, the action takes place on a
hot August night in 1955. Relatives have
gathered to celebrate the 65th birthday of
the Pollitt family’s patriarch, Big Daddy, a
loud, abrasive man with a penchant for vul-
garity. Big Daddy’s two sons, Gooper and
Brick are sole heirs to their father’s for-
tune. They’ve been informed that the old
man is dying of cancer, although neither
Big Daddy nor Big Mama have received
the news.
Reviled by both parents, eldest son
Gooper and his scheming wife Mae have
designs on Daddy’s millions and hope to
win him over by proving how conscientious
they are and by displaying the “entertain-
ing” antics of their five children. The
favored younger son, Brick, is a has-been
football star who’s descended into alco-
holism following the suicide of a college
friend. Brick resents his wife, Maggie,
because he believes she had an affair with
his friend. Brick refuses to sleep with
Maggie, although she remains devoted to
him. But because they have failed to pro-
duce grandchildren, Big Daddy is inclined
to leave his estate to Gooper.
As the evening progresses, the children
run amok, Mae and Gooper conspire, tem-
pers flare, and Big Daddy, who must face
his own mortality, attempts to reconnect
with Brick.
For this final show of the season, direc-
tor James Aday has done an extraordinary
job, casting players who are divinely suited
to their roles. In particular, Ken Hof, who
plays Big Daddy, is a delightful curmudg-
eon of significant stature and cadence.
Likewise, Shannon Fabry is spot-on in her
representation of Maggie. Sultry, sassy and
slinky as a cat, Fabry imparts a striking
pose with her jet black hair, vivid red dress
and three-inch heels. Cameron Carlisle is
her bitter and conflicted spouse, Brick.
Carlisle spends most of the play numbed by
booze, but he conveys real tension and
drama in later scenes.
Brassy and bossy, Nancy Boyett lends
great flair to her role as the jovial Big Mama.
Emily Gilbert is great as the conniving Mae,
shuffling handily between little Miss
Innocence and caustic bitch. Mike Hawkins
is quite good as the insensitive Gooper.
Rounding out the cast is Don Aday as Doc
Baugh, Lawrence Larson as Rev. Tooker and
Elizabeth Hanson, Kit Kimball, Hannah
Gilbert, Ryan Stisser, and Natalie Grace
White as Mae’s “no-neck monster” kids.
If you think it’s hot outside, VLT’s Cat
on a Hot Tin Roof provides a nice, slow siz-
zle inside. The production runs through
August 28.
ew