Late September 2019
What
is often the good thing about a veteran character actor as solid and savvy as Michael Tucker (best known for L.A. Law) turning his hand to
playwriting, is that he will almost certainly deliver a stageworthy vessel. And
indeed, with Fern Hill, currently
at 59E59, Mr. Tucker has: a one-set piece that is technically impeccable, with
excellent, natural-sounding dialogue; and being a fellow whose natural bearing
seems to exude generosity of spirit (don't really know him, but met him a
couple of times), that extends to the characters he has created, even the ones
in trouble and less giving; he has
compassion for them all, and they all seem delightful roles to play: certainly
he has attracted an A+ half dozen.
The caveat? Well, a brief
description of the play first.
Three married couples, old friends,
from very different backgrounds, all nearing, at or over golden-year retirement
age, get together at the rambling farmhouse owned by one of the couplers, and
begin to explore the possibility of all moving in together for the rest of
their lives; to keep company and to take care of each other…to bypass the
problems of being a burden to their grown kids, of growing old alone.
That discussion, and a good deal of
banter—some playful, some edgy, none meant to do real damage—take up most of
Act One. And, as I say, when delivered by the likes of Mark Blum, Jill Eikenberry (the
real-life wife of the playwright), John
Glover, Mark Linn-Baker, Jodi Long and Ellen Parker, well, what’s not to
like? They hold stage like they don't have to think about it and they make
the illusion of keeping it real look easy (to the extent that the correctly
invisible direction of Nadia Tass can
be credited as an aide to this, so be it).
But you do spend most of that act
wondering what ride you're on; what the playwright had in mind. You know he
means to explore something thematic,
but damned if it's identifiable. Then, right near the end of the act, the
rituals of gathering take on a bit of forward-moving story…and we have a hint.
Then, come Act Two, Tucker reveals what's really going on. It's a play, at
least in part, about the healing potential of community.
And while it's blessedly not too
late for your enjoyment of the play, which, at least for me, started right
away, it nonetheless can't mitigate a feeling of seeing an aimless wanderer
find his way, which I guess is really a feeling that the play, for all its
polished presentation, is still a work in progress.
A worthy one, though. Which is
better than the alternative.
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