Theatre--Review

A new feature is being added to the blog: Two local theatre mainstays have agreed to begin reviewing area productions. Duncan Thistlewaite, artistic director at Cite Des Arts, and Walter Brown, board member and former artistic director of the Evangeline Players and current instructor at the University of Louisiana--Lafayette, will be reviewing shows for the website. Neither will review shows produced by the companies/organizations with which they are associated. Walter begins with a review of Driving Miss Daisy, now running at Cite Des Arts.

Driving Miss Daisy tells the story of two people who seem to be worlds apart but who are united in being outsiders in pre-Civil Rights America. Miss Daisy is an elderly Jewish widow in Atlanta, Georgia. Her son, Boolie, hires a black man (none too young himself) to drive her and keep her company. Over the next two decades they develop a close and abiding bond which lasts to Miss Daisy's final days.

The success of Driving Miss Daisy rests solely on how much you like the characters and invest in their various relationships. Miss Daisy, in particular, is a tricky part which can seem to be simply unpleasant rather than desperate about a life which is slipping out of her control.

The production at Cite Des Arts (Lafayette, corner of 3rd and Vine) is the warmest production I have seen. Jenny Felder as Miss Daisy does give us a feeling of a woman struggling with loss and uncertainty. Even when Daisy is being difficult, we feel sympathy for her loss of independence and respect for her determination to hold on to her dignity. Miss Felder projects a woman many years older than herself with a consistent body language and subtly effective makeup and costuming. Her vocal work is very good as well. A.D. Dugar is a splendid Hoke--his is a wonderfully natural performance which reveals a man with too much dignity to be beaten down by life and with reserves of strength and generosity of spirit which Miss Daisy will need more and more as the years go by. Mr. Dugar mimes the car doors and the myriad small acts of driving superbly.

Duncan Thistlethwaite does double duty as Boolie Werthen, her assimilating businessman son and as the director/designer of this production. He shines in all of these roles. Thistlethwaite makes Boolie much more of a presence than I remembered from past productions, presenting a man who can handle his difficult mother, his social-climbing wife and his employees with charm and compassion.

The set is very clever with one area representing Miss Daisy's home, the opposite side of the stage representing Boolie's office and a revolving platform which has a set of car seats and a steering wheel (!) mounted on it. When the car is turned away from the audience it becomes a tombstone and the wall of a nursing home. The lighting is atmospheric without seeming murky and the music is well-chosen and evocative of mood, place and time.

I recommend this production to anyone who loves good theatre. This is an outstanding production and a credit to all concerned. Let's give it the audience it deserves!