Combining a superbly written script with an outstanding student production staff, the 3Ps' major fall production of Paula Vogel's How I Learned to Drive allowed the audience to laugh, to cringe and, most importantly, to leave feeling satisfied.
The show was a great accomplishment, barring a few drawbacks.
Drive's cast rose to the challenge of portraying the script's weighty situations - overall, the acting was tremendous despite the considerable difficulties involved in each role. Topics like pedophilia and incest were handled with grace, allowing the audience to walk out of the theater content that the past had been resolved for these characters. The play was not written to make audiences dwell on these taboo issues but rather to make them see how it is possible to move on with your life.
Director Jennifer Bien deserves credit for imparting this message unto her audience members through her directorial vision. She was clearly assisted in her realization of this vision by five committed actors. Junior Sarah Kauderer portrayed Lil' Bit at several different ages and stood out as a noteworthy talent. She exhibited great ease in making the transition from talking to the crowd and then jumping back into a scene and commanded the stage with the same strength that her character possessed after leaving her past behind.
Sophomore Graham Outerbridge faced equally daunting challenges playing Uncle Peck, an aggressor of molestation and incest, an ex-soldier, and an alcoholic. Undoubtedly, he ran into some problems trying to identify with such a complex character. To his credit, he managed to uncover some of Uncle Peck's layers, forcing the audience to see the human being behind the gruesome actions.
The rest of the cast comprised the Greek chorus, which took on several roles throughout the play. Senior Ann Blumenstock's roles included Lil' Bit's mom and Uncle Peck's wife, and she displayed a dead-on sense of comedy. She had the whole audience in an uproar with an "how to drink like a woman" talk with Lil' Bit. Sophomore Sam Rivers switched from portraying a hysterical high school geek to giving a knee-slappingly funny rendition of The Monkees' "I'm a Believer" as the grandfather. Sophomore Megan Hammer added to the play's comedy by playing an amusing sex-obsessed grandmother, among other roles.
On the whole, the members of the Greek chorus demonstrated great versatility as actors and provided the funniest moments of the play. Still, the assignment of so many roles left certain characters undeveloped.
For as much work the chorus had to do onstage, the director must have done three times the amount to put the entire show together. Certainly, Bien took on an enormous task in coordinating the production - not only because of the play's density but also the scores of technical additions. In general, she used smooth blocking patterns and made the transitions seamless, especially considering the nonlinear sequencing of the script. She definitely made some bold choices in the decoration of the theater, which aided the overall presentation by providing more outlets for storytelling.
The entire technical staff deserves praise for giving the Balch Arena Theater a distinct style. Technical Director Ben Gomberg should be commended for pulling off many technical cues with minimal errors. The slide projector displayed images coinciding with the story, and audio recordings from educational driving videos throughout the play. These stimuli provided the audience with an abstract metaphor that it had to interpret for themselves.
Below the slide projector, Set Designer Annie Cardinaux and her construction staff put half of a real car onto a platform built partly into the seats. The infusion of the car into the space served as a great example the power a prop can hold. Looking at the stage, the audience is immediately drawn to the car - it is immediately apparent that cars, or driving, will be crucial to understanding the focus of the play.
Along this same vein, there were also video monitors running a drivers' education video and the other an educational video on family sexual assault prevention. Road signs (with sexual innuendoes) were placed all along the sides of the theater. All these additions, along with strong acting, directing, and impressive use of technology, contributed to a great fall major performance.
