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| 'Over the River' a tasty tale of
family | ||||||||
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| My late grandmother, God rest her soul, had one endearing and sometimes maddening trait: she loved to feed me. |
| It didn't matter what time of day it was, or how often I went
to visit her. If I walked in the door, she wanted to know if I was
hungry. She had a passion for cooking, and she cherished even more
putting food in my stomach. As I sat watching "Over The River And Through The Woods" last weekend -- the story of a 29-year-old man who has to tell his loving but overly possessive grandparents that he's been offered a promotion, but one that requires him to relocate across the country -- there were times when I felt like I was watching my Nana's ghost on the stage. Nick, the main character, has Italian grandparents, while my grandmother was Portuguese, but that doesn't matter. I related. Big time. So did Betty Teixeira-Ward, who decided to direct the show for the Little Theatre of Fall River, Inc. after catching a performance in one of New York's off-Broadway theaters. "I kept thinking the author had spied on moments in my own family," she wrote as part of the program handout. "There were aspects of each character that I identified with as being unique to my own family." That familiarity -- not to mention universality -- of the play's themes are both its chief strength and central weakness. Written by Joe DiPietro, it's a loving tribute to family; poor Nick tries so hard to find the right moment to break the news to his four grandparents, who are still saddened by the fact that Nick's parents left New Jersey for Florida years ago. Nick is the only one they have left. As Nick braces himself to dish out the bad news, his grandma Aida constantly wants to feed him, and his other grandma Emma wants to find him a girlfriend. They're all horrified when they learn he's seeing a therapist. In their day, nobody but nobody ever paid a guy to listen to their problems. They kindly offer to do it for free. The fact that anybody -- Italian, Portuguese, French, Jewish, whatever -- could relate to these grandmothers makes the play instantly likable. DiPietro's chief flaw is that the situations he puts his characters into seldom stray from your average television sitcom. It started to feel like an ethnic version of "Everybody Loves Raymond," or maybe "All In The Family" without the politics. What it needs to really work -- and what the Little Theatre so triumphantly provides -- is a wonderful cast to bring these funny, touching characters to life, and make them seem as real your own "Can I make you a sandwich, dear?" granny, or your own "Who says I'm too old to drive?" grandpa. "Over The River" is set in the home of Nick's grandparents Frank and Aida. Every time Nick walks in the door, he finds it sweltering in there. Frank and Aida think it's too cold. The best way to cool Nick down, Aida figures, is not to open the window but to make him a nice sandwich -- even if he did just have a large Chinese meal. His other grandparents, Nunzio and Emma, come over to visit. Emma brings along her young friend Caitlin, a nurse who -- surprise, surprise -- doesn't have a boyfriend. She has Caitlin sit right next to Nick at the dinner table. When Caitlin says she can't eat veal because she's a vegetarian, Nunzio wants to know why an animal doctor can't eat meat. Within a half hour, Nick is questioning whether he'll still be sane before the night is over. The cast does wonders with the material, making the characters not only very real, but as likable as they are exasperating. It's hard not to empathize with Nick's frustrations, but it's also impossible not to find Nick far too impatient with his basically daffy but sweet grandparents. Then again, we don't have to see them every Sunday night for dinner. As Nick, David Ciampa sometimes looks like his head is going to explode, and his mix of aggravation and genuine love for his grandparents seems both realistic and poignant. Suzie Gardiner's Aida just can't resist rushing into the kitchen to fix everyone a snack. Ron Robinson (Frank), Richard Pelletier (Nunzio) and Martha Peladeau (Emma) are a riot, particularly when Nunzio finds a truly bizarre way to solve a Trivial Pursuit question. Christine Pelletier is also quite funny as the more patient Caitlin. I also liked the way Teixeira-Ward had the crew cook an actual meal for the cast to eat during the dinner scene, allowing the heavenly aroma to fill the entire theater. It sums up the spirit of this play, which gives the audience a figurative seat at the table, allowing them a glimpse of some comical, sad, and touching moments in this family's life. Chances are, most members of the audience will leave the theater with a desire to call their own grandparents, or grandkids, just to say hello. "Over the River and Through the Woods" continues tonight and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. at the Firebarn, corner of Highland and Prospect. Tickets are $10. Student, children, senior citizen and group rates are also available. Call 508-675-1852. |
| ©The Herald News 2002 |
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