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'Talley's Folly' actors have mutual admiration By Lorraine Lucciola, Standard-Times
correspondent 
Lanford Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning script, "Talley's Folly," is no
frivolous matter for Little Theatre of Fall River director, Leo Strickman,
and his cast. "The
play is perfect for the Firebarn," says Mr. Strickman, a veteran director
and performer with the local theater group that has been in existence for
more than 60 years. The intimacy of the Firebarn offers an 88-seat
capacity that is conducive to smaller productions, preferred by many
Little Theatre devotees. Mr. Strickman describes
"Talley's Folly" as a "sweet romance." He says it has "the beauty, the
charm and the challenge of a two-character play." Shael Colantonio plays Sally
Talley, a sassy, structured and insulated young woman. William "Bing"
McGrath portrays Matt Friedman, a stubbornly sweet and unlikely suitor.
The action of the
play takes place in the Talley family's deserted boathouse in Lebanon, Mo.
Matt, an accountant from St. Louis, arrives there to plead his love to
Sally despite her rebuffs and doubts that a relationship between them
could ever survive.
There is a beautifully balanced give-and-take quality about the script
that is self-fueling. In candid and sensitive dialogue, through poignant
confessions and carefully placed humor, the characters reveal and share
their triumphs, tragedies, cultural differences and thoughts about a
future together. Matt embraces it. Sally dashes it to pieces. "Sally is close to me in
some ways," confides Mrs. Colantonio. "She is teasing, in a friendly way;
sarcastic ... fun to play. She has a bad love affair, she has baggage and
lost the will to live. Matt draws her out." "I think Bing is great!" she
continues. "He's very natural and very generous on stage. It's no easy
task, just me and another person on stage alone for one hour and 40
minutes! I admire his acting ability." Mrs. Colantonio calls
herself "a real girl. ... I love romance!" Mr. McGrath echoes Mrs.
Colantonio's thoughts about possessing personal traits similar to those of
the fictional characters they play. Matt "reminds me of someone
I know -- ME!" says Mr. McGrath, with a winning, cockeyed half-grin.
"Shael's a doll and
Leo doesn't push or pressure. I like to be natural on stage," he adds.
"I feel for Matt,"
says Mr. McGrath. "One of the keys to playing him is to have an affinity
for Judaism ... how Jews came to this country, and to understand first-
and second-generation Jews," he notes. "When I was growing up, I lived in
a six-family tenement. Three of the families were Jewish." Mr. McGrath agrees that the
professional pressure is on in a production which features just two
players. He is, however, no stranger to the stage, having appeared in
approximately 150 shows in area theaters. "I try to forget everything
else and become the character. I love theater. I love the whole process. I
watch everything associated with a production. It's a passion," he says.
Mr. Strickman's
"passion" for "Talley's Folly" takes momentum from a Fall River connection
to the original New York production, starring Judd Hirsch.
 "Dr. Harry Cooperstein's (a
Fall River resident) daughter, Nancy, was one of the first backers of the
original show in New York. She is married to actor Jordan Charney, you
know," says Mr. Strickman. The director is also sensitive to and
passionately interested in the references in the script to the Holocaust.
Mr. Strickman and
cast are assisted by Barbara Gerraughty, stage manager. Little Theatre of Fall
River's production of "Talley's Folly" opens at 8 tomorrow evening at the
Firebarn, 320 Prospect St., Fall River. It continues at 8 Saturday and 7
Sunday, and resumes with performances at 8 p.m. Aug. 24 through 26, with a
concluding performance at 7 p.m. Aug. 27. Tickets are $10, with
discounts available for students, seniors and groups. For reservations and
information, call (508) 675-1852.
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