TH EATER
BY ANNA GRACE
LOVE, DENIAL AND
JUDGMENT DAY
Lord Leebrick Theatre presents
Next Fall
L
uke is going to come out to his parents next fall.
Always next fall.
For Luke (John Jeffrey) conservative, literalist
Christianity has made sense of the world, giving
him peace and even joy. He views homosexuality
as his own particular struggle and prays for
forgiveness while taking great pleasure in this “sin.” It
works for him, but not for the man he has fallen in love
with: Adam (Tony Stirpe) can claim the preachy moral
high ground of an atheist but is wracked with doubt and
angst, scrambling for a sense of purpose as he negotiates
his way through the world.
Geoffrey Nauffts’ award-winning play tackles the issue
of church and sex with humor, heartbreak and complexity.
Craig Willis directs with an even hand to all points of view,
highlighting only the fact that every one of the characters
is trapped by homophobia.
Storm Kennedy gives the performance of her career as
Luke’s mother Arlene. With simple clarity, this Southern
belle-turned party girl-turned back to the church knows
exactly where her own faults lie. Yet peeking through her
hilarious, outrageous ramblings and ranting, is absolute
love: love for her son, her ex-husband, and even for the
partner that Luke cannot acknowledge. William Campbell
also wows with a stellar performance as the foul-mouthed,
LEF T TO RIGHT: TOM WILSON, DONELL AELIZABETH ALSTON, TONY STIRPE,
JOHN JEFFREY, STORM KENNEDY, WILLIAM CAMPBELL
litigation-threatening bigot who loves his son so much he
can’t listen to him.
Tom Wilson is grave as Brandon, another conservative
Christian, who has come to peace with his attraction to
men, but draws the line at falling in love. Donella-
Elizabeth Alston plays well as Holly, a point of sanity in
this storm.
Lacking in this play is chemistry between the central
couple. Adam’s love for Luke is not palpable, but his
frustration sure is. The poignancy of their tragedy is lost
without a belief that they could really make it together. Not
that Nauffts gives the lovers much to work with, the slices
of their lives you get to see inevitably roll back into an
argument about religion.
Next Fall doesn’t provide any clean answers. For those
who walk easy in the world knowing they will never be
beaten bloody for who they choose to love, never asked to
live a lie to maintain their family’s love, there is much in
this play to remind us of the injustice that continues to rage
for so many. Yet right next to the painful examples of
bigotry and willful misunderstanding, the healing power of
a conformist faith is given its fair due. Some of the
arguments about Christianity run a bit stale, pointing out
the logistical fallacies of the rapture, rather than the
amorality of denying homosexuals the right to love, but
Nauffts does do a beautiful job of illustrating the
weaknesses inherent in faith and atheism.
Ultimately, this touching story quietly proclaims that
here on earth, we are one another’s salvation, come what
may in the hereafter. ■
Next Fall plays at Lord Leebrick Theatre Nov. 2 – 25; $16-$24; $12, 25
and under.
America's
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—Ken and Elaine Aubrey
A brassy
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19 on stage: Big
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swing dancing!
Hult Center
Friday, Nov 16 at 7 pm
presented by:
Tickets: One
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Also: University
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Ticket Office
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Call: 541-682-5000
Online: HultCenter.org
National Tour and Event Info: artbeatshows.org & inthemoodlive.com
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November 8, 2012 • eugeneweekly.com