Photographs Left Undeveloped

Sundown, Yellow Moon – Raven Theatre

Cody Estle, the clever and accomplished young Artistic Director of Raven Theatre, has gently navigated this inaugural production of his company’s 37th season. Rachel Bonds’ mellow, somewhat merciful one-act drama is warmhearted, but doesn’t go anywhere. It’s like seven characters in search of a plot, or a series of photographs left undeveloped. By the end of this play with music, the audience is left wanting more.

The play is about a homecoming set in a rural Tennessee college town, where everybody knows your name. Fraternal twins Ray (Rayleen) and Joey (Josephine) have returned to the rustic cottage where Tom, their divorced father, is living by himself. He’s been suspended from his teaching position for having a violent argument with the conservative headmaster in front of his students. While flailing his arms about, Tom accidentally smacked the superintendent’s wife in the face, giving her a black eye. Tom is being counseled by Carver, a local young man who’s dealing with his own demons from the past.

Tom’s two grown children have their own individual problems. Ray has recently left her job, primarily the result of breaking off an uncomfortable affair with her female boss. Unfortunately Ray is still in love with her, but she’s not sure if the feeling is mutual. Ray is also an aspiring songwriter, but her creative well has recently dried up. Joey has been awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study in Berlin. However, she’s anxious, even fearful, of spending the next three years alone in a foreign country. Joey’s worried about making new friends, while proving to the world that she’s smart enough to deserve such an academic honor. In addition, Joey’s been going through a romantic drought lately. When she chances to meet a handsome man, while swimming at the reservoir, Joey’s interest piques. Ted’s a poet, whose wife’s writing success has eclipsed his own popularity. Since she’s away on a book tour, Ted and Joey take advantage of their mutual loneliness and attraction.

The cast is talented and charismatic. The always magnetic Liz Chidester, so remarkable in “High Fidelity” and “Queen of the Mist,” is vulnerable and absolutely heartbreaking as Ray. She brings so much honesty to this role, as slight as it is written. Liz gets to sing a couple of songs, written by The Bengsons; but Ms. Chidester’s accomplished musical talents seem almost wasted in this play. 

Diana Coates is excellent as Joey, the gifted scholar who is her own greatest enemy. Crippled by apprehension and a lack of confidence, Joey continually denies her own gifts and social prowess. Almost as undermining is Joey’s loneliness, underplayed by Ms. Coates, as she hides her emotions behind her intellect and a gift for gab. Diana has a beautifully expressive face and an eloquence with words that makes her performance a standout.
Another of Chicago’s finest, multitalented young actors, Jordan Dell Harris is solid and charmingly earnest as Carver. Along with Ms. Coates, Harris is making his Raven debut, although he’s been enjoyed in wonderful recent productions of “Evil Dead: The Musical,” “A Little Night Music,” and will be appearing next at Windy City Playhouse in “Boys in the Band.” This handsome actor, with the sweetest singing voice, plays this  failed musician with authenticity and understated enthusiasm.

 Veteran Chicago actor Will Casey, who recently left audiences laughing as Selsdon, in Windy City Playhouse’s “Noises Off,” is compelling as Tom. Mr. Casey plays a man coping with anger management issues, who’s anguish understandably consumes his entire being. Will Casey is, as so often the case, a lesson in fine acting. And, as Ted, Josh Odor, who’s appeared on stages all over Chicago, can now add Raven Theatre to his impressive resume. Like Ms. Coates, Josh deftly underplays the role of a poet suffering from writer’s block and filled with feelings of inadequacy, particularly  as he stands in the shadow of his more successful wife. Talented actor and musicians Jeanne T. Arrigo and Rob Frankel have cameo roles as Jean and Bobby, Tom’s harmonic friends, who stop over to lift his spirits with song.
Help in making the Tennessee backwoods feel realistic comes from the work of several artists. Scenic designer Jeffrey D. Kmiec creates a sprawling rural setting that nicely depicts Tom’s cabin, front porch and the reservoir. Eric Backus has designed a palette of background music and sound effects that bolsters the country setting; and Becca Jeffords completes the look with her dreamy moonlit illumination. 

The biggest problem with Rachel Bonds’ play is that it goes nowhere. Beyond our initial meeting of each character and the performance of a few homey songs, nothing really happens. The play crawls along, introducing each personality, dangling  fragments of their pasts, and offering slivers of their problems and passions. Nothing is developed any further and the play ends almost the way it began. Unlike Ms. Bonds’ more evolved “Five Mile Lake,” given such a stunning production by Shattered Globe, Mr. Estle’s fine direction of a talented cast can only accomplish so much. If a script doesn’t offer enough story or character development for theatergoers, there’s not a lot to hold the audience’s interest.

Somewhat Recommended

Reviewed by Colin Douglas    

Presented October 3-November 17 by Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark St., Chicago.

Tickets are available at the box office, by calling 773-338-2177 or by going to www.raventheatre.com.

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.