Probably the most revived play not written by Tennessee Williams, "Our Town" is more than just a look at Grover's Corners New Hampshire, the type of place that "King's Row" informed us was the ideal American community and a great place to raise your children. Unlike that Mid Western town with its share of scandal, "Our Town" is an uneventful place where everybody leads a routine life; Like Grand Hotel, People come and go, but nothing ever happens. The only difference, is that when they go, its off to college, and afterwards, they are back in Grover's Corners, probably living in the house they grew up in, left to them (or to be left to them) by their parents. The basic story is almost missing a plot line; Next door neighbors are not surprised when their children grow up together, fall in love, and marry.
What happens, however, is more than just that, and it is in the second act where that all comes out. Emily, the bride, has died in childbirth, and now, she has joined all the rest of deceased Grovers Corners residents. Desperate to get back, she makes the mistake of wanting to live one day over-a birthday 15 years before. Going back, she learns, is not always wise.
There is something haunting in this production based upon the Westport Community Playhouse production produced by Joanne Woodward. Her husband Paul Newman has the leading role of the stage manager, a narrator who appears to know something about each and every resident of the community and their family. Who he is really is never fully explained, but there are hints that he himself is a long deceased ghost who has watched the living from beyond and is the guiding spirit for the newly deceased. The stage with only a few exceptions is bare, and the actors rely on little props. The actors (with the exception of Jane Curtin as Emily's mother) are all unfamiliar to even the most devoted of Broadway theatre goers, and that gives this production a freshness and a feeling of being a stranger in a new community.
If you grew up in a small town, you will find every archetype here for every different kind of character. You know them: you know exactly what time they will be sitting out on their porch, what pew they will be sitting in at church, and what restaurant they will go to for breakfast after service is over. When they don't show up for church, you know that someone will be going to check on them, especially if they are elderly. "Our Town" is filled with that kind of atmosphere, and it also questions humanity on its ability to handle change or trying a different routine. The final scene where Emily meets up with the deceased townspeople is haunting, because it is all so familiar, yet so different. The legendary Newman gives an authoritative performance that holds the play together like glue, and it is wonderful that the production was released on video for those unlucky in trying to get a ticket (like myself) to get the chance to see.
What happens, however, is more than just that, and it is in the second act where that all comes out. Emily, the bride, has died in childbirth, and now, she has joined all the rest of deceased Grovers Corners residents. Desperate to get back, she makes the mistake of wanting to live one day over-a birthday 15 years before. Going back, she learns, is not always wise.
There is something haunting in this production based upon the Westport Community Playhouse production produced by Joanne Woodward. Her husband Paul Newman has the leading role of the stage manager, a narrator who appears to know something about each and every resident of the community and their family. Who he is really is never fully explained, but there are hints that he himself is a long deceased ghost who has watched the living from beyond and is the guiding spirit for the newly deceased. The stage with only a few exceptions is bare, and the actors rely on little props. The actors (with the exception of Jane Curtin as Emily's mother) are all unfamiliar to even the most devoted of Broadway theatre goers, and that gives this production a freshness and a feeling of being a stranger in a new community.
If you grew up in a small town, you will find every archetype here for every different kind of character. You know them: you know exactly what time they will be sitting out on their porch, what pew they will be sitting in at church, and what restaurant they will go to for breakfast after service is over. When they don't show up for church, you know that someone will be going to check on them, especially if they are elderly. "Our Town" is filled with that kind of atmosphere, and it also questions humanity on its ability to handle change or trying a different routine. The final scene where Emily meets up with the deceased townspeople is haunting, because it is all so familiar, yet so different. The legendary Newman gives an authoritative performance that holds the play together like glue, and it is wonderful that the production was released on video for those unlucky in trying to get a ticket (like myself) to get the chance to see.