All My Sons

(Theater Reviewer: Linda Marley Smith)

Mounting an Arthur Miller drama is not for the faint hearted.  Miller’s material requires the actor to completely surrender his or herself to the character, a challenge many amateur actors are not willing to face.  This reviewer was once privileged to witness George C. Scott, Theresa Wright, Harvey Keitel and James Farentino in a quintessential, visceral performance of Death of a Salesman in 1975.  The Little Theater of Virginia Beach  has taken the privilege of breathing life into All My Sons very seriously and, largely, succeeds.

All My Sons was Arthur Miller’s first successful play, a contemporary piece written merely two years after the end of WWII.  We forget how young the returning veterans were, and how desperately American citizens wanted to establish a safe, orderly, “normal” life after experiencing the fear and chaos of the Great Depression and WWII.  Themes of denial and the individual’s heart-wrenching struggle with cultural ethos while being overwhelmed by industrial and governmental expedience were startling then and deserve to be revisited today

The action takes place in the yard of the lovely upper middle class home of Joe and Kate Keller.  Joe is the blustery, charming, and sometimes crusty owner of a local business that supplied faulty airplane parts to the military during the war.  He was convicted and sent to prison, along with his neighbor and partner, Steve Deever, but later exonerated while Steve remained in prison.  Joe and Kate’s elder son, Larry, is MIA while the younger son, Chris, is home from the war while seeking to establish a normal life.  Kate doggedly persists in her belief that son Larry will return home, citing several examples of soldiers showing up months and years later.  Chris and the neighbors keep up a sturdy wall of denial around the question of Joe’s possible guilt.

Local veteran Joel King gives us a commanding Joe Keller that is thoroughly believable and consistent.  We see his personae erode over the course of the play as the unpleasant truth begins to leak, then flow into his island of denial.  Beth Fotheringham gives herself completely to Kate Keller, bringing the audience to tears as she totters on the edge of denial and destruction.  Chris Keller is ably played by Jeremiah Joyce, who displays moments of brilliance, yet stuttered with pacing and seemed a bit disconnected with the material in Act I.  Leigh Strenger is consistent and focused as Ann Deever, Larry’s one-time girlfriend, Chris’s fiancé, and daughter of the imprisoned partner.  An array of intriguing neighbors surround this family such as Mike Dunavan who portrays the affable Dr. Jim Bayliss, Robin Martineau as the doctor’s annoyingly incisive wife, Sue Bayliss, Bob Springstead as nice-guy Frank Lubey, and Cora Flottman who lights up the stage as Lydia Lubey.  We are also treated to a completely disarming performance by Jackson Martingayle as neighbor boy Bert.  Ann’s brother, George, is well-executed by Alex Garrison, who seems slightly young for the role, but otherwise fine.

The set, which includes a soft yellow and white middle-class Victorian cottage, gazebo and trees designed by Jason Martens, was perfectly designed and decorated.  It provided an essential, ironic backdrop to the tragedy unfolding before us.  Costumes designed by Adelle Gresock were well-done with the exception of an unfortunate dress in Act II which distracted from the action.  All other aspects, including lighting (Mike Hilton) and props (Elizabeth Martingayle) were excellent.

Director Nancy Bloom has successfully drawn all these elements together to provide an ultimately arresting audience experience.  Her skillful blocking is especially to be admired.  Although the pacing in Act I wasn’t quite on track, the cast provided a gripping, often gut-wrenching Act II (combined II & III) that was thoroughly engaging.  This is theatre that offers up more than entertainment; it causes us to think about important things like family, integrity and hubris.  Get a ticket.  It’s worth every penny! For further information visit LTVB at: http://ltvb.com