The Little Foxes
Presented by Tennessee Repertory Theatre
Through Mar. 18 in TPAC’s Polk Theater
For tickets, call 255-ARTS
Another busy weekend in Nashville theater means another visit to Tennessee Repertory Theatre, where Lillian Hellman’s vintage period drama The Little Foxes opened at TPAC’s Polk Theater.
While it’s not necessarily a good thing when set designs are blowing away actors and directors, in this case we’ll make an exception. Gary C. Hoff’s re-creation of the drawing room of a classic turn-of-the-century Southern mansion is a real stunner. Theatergoers are treated to a large and lavishly decorated tableau—all gleaming wood floors and trim, a dramatically looming staircase, antique furniture and accessories, authentic-looking paintings, dazzling light fixtures, a grand piano in the corner, and a general sense of eye-popping richness throughout. The set is as deep as it is wide, allowing a view through the parlor to the rear dining room, where various incidental scenes are played throughout the evening. It is awe-inspiring to grab that glimpse of Hoff’s handiwork as one first enters the theater. And while The Rep’s chief set designer has distinguished himself before with imaginative, ambitious settings, this one is pretty much the pièce de résistance in its attention to detail. It would be welcome in any legitimate house on Broadway.
As for Hellman’s 1939 saga of a few critical weeks in the life of the Hubbard family, it doesn’t creak as much as one might think. What it says about the vestiges of old Southern ways and antebellum mind-sets remains provocative—and not the least bit flattering.
It doesn’t help that the Hubbards are, in the main, pretty reprehensible people. There are Ben and Oscar, and their sister, Regina Giddens, all three of whom are looking to cash in on a big cotton mill deal with a Chicago financier named Marshall. The only fly in the ointment is Regina’s sickly husband Horace, whose money they need to complete the plan. Without regard for anyone else, these three conspire and manipulate their way through the evening, even turning against themselves to suit their selfish desires. They enlist Oscar’s weak son, Leo, in their machinations and otherwise wreak emotional havoc with everybody else, including Oscar’s wife, Birdie, and Regina’s daughter, Alexandra.
The lead figures here are arrogant, uncaring, spiritually bankrupt creatures who, in the course of their relentless pursuit of the almighty dollar, espouse all the ugly narrow-mindedness and phony elitism of so-called old-money Southerners. What’s worse is that their absolute corruption is expressed in the name of family.
So with all this dysfunction, you might expect a lot of onstage fireworks. There is an air of drama here, yes, but most of the audience’s engagement involves following the twists and turns of plot. This sustains interest pretty consistently, until about the middle of Act 3, when things turn talky and uninteresting.
Hellman’s play certainly provides ample opportunities for the players to create character. There is a lack, however, of organic life in director David Grapes’ treatment. Actors pose efficiently, go through all the motions, and speak the words that push events forward. Yet scenes are devoid of one-to-one engagement, and at times it looks like the cast is afraid to mix it up like people do in real life.
Grapes appears content to allow his actors to find their motivation and the play’s through-line all on their own. It’s a mistake with this cast. There are experienced players on board, but their weaknesses are glaring. Wm. Daniel File and Cecil Jones seem out of place as the brothers Hubbard. They stomp about and piss and moan, but with little grace. File in particular is as awkward as they come (and one doubts that it’s an outgrowth of character development). Matt Chiorini as the dissolute Leo isn’t much better. His energy seems misplaced, but he also seems miscast. Steven Hauck as Horace tries hard to dramatize the proceedings when he makes his entrance late in the show. It works at first, but Hauck’s delivery becomes annoyingly mannered, and he fails to distinguish himself.
Now for the ladies of the house. Tandy Cronyn is a talented actress, and as Regina, she looks great in Lane Fragomeli’s striking costumes. Her performance is good, but it’s only a little more engaged than the dreary menfolk’s. Nan Gurley as sister-in-law Birdie is involved in moments of power, and she is an obvious figure of great sympathy. But her performance can’t avoid descending into cloying melodrama. Sarah Bloom is actually pretty good as Alexandra, but like everybody else, she needs help nailing her role.
Supporting players include Henry Haggard as Marshall, Persephone Felder-Fentress as Addie the domestic, and Tony Williams as Cal the houseboy. All three are solid—in particular Williams, who provides needed verve in every scene in which he appears.
The Little Foxes is a worthy curiosity of a play, despite all its bombast and the preening that it seems to require of its cast. Unfortunately, there’s no strong directorial hand here to find the real personas behind the stereotypes. With that, an opportunity is missed to bring this production through the fourth wall and out into the audience. Like some lonely Southern lady, it’s all dressed up, but with nowhere to go.
In the works
Actors Bridge Ensemble opened its New Works Lab 2001, a program of staged readings of works-in-progress, last weekend. The series debuted Friday night with company founder Bill Feehely’s Working With Glass, which was followed Saturday by Ben Bettenbender’s Those Left Behind.
Bettenbender has an interesting theatrical pedigree—his father ran the theater program at Rutgers University for many years—and he has had some recent success with plays currently being performed in Chicago and New York. Those Left Behind is a thoroughly literate script, and it offers a fairly heady exploration of the nature of justice and revenge. It definitely needs more work, though, in particular because it’s too long to be a one-act, but isn’t long—or well-developed—enough to be considered full-length. It also appears to be a victim of too much talk and not enough action.
Of course, that’s what staged readings are all about: getting material out into the open and seeing where it’s headed and where it wants to go. Bettenbender’s script has value, and it received needed airing with the vocal assistance of Feehely, Elizabeth Bell, Rachel Agee, Pete Fitzkee, Don Griffiths, and Vali Forrister.
New Works Lab continues this weekend. For information, call 341-0300.
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