Ivan Menchell's play, The Cemetery Club, is the perfect fodder for a smaller theatre company. Its five-person cast and cute concept have guaranteed it perpetual play among the community and dinner theatre set. If you go in to the Mesa Encore Theatre production directed by Jody McNelis expecting cute, then you'll be happy. While there's nothing extraordinary about the production, there's nothing terrible about it either. Everything is sweetness and light with three gravestones flanking Karen Rolston's basic box set.
Set in Forest Hills, Queens, the story revolves around three old friends whose husbands have passed on within the past few years. They have remained each others support while visiting their husband's graves once a month. Doris is devoted to her husband's memory, living to honor him, Ida is considering moving on with her life, while Lucille seems to have already done so. When Sam the Butcher, a recent widower, catches Ida's eye, the Cemetery Club threatens to fall apart because of the rift.
The second Friday night performance seemed a bit draggy and lacking in energy. While McNelis' blocking is successful, the pacing was sluggish. Vera Pollack's Ida is more soft-spoken than seems necessary, to the point where it was hard to hear her dialogue. Mary Anne Ascuito's brash presentation of the loud Lucille is good when she's on, but she seemed hesitant with her dialogue, even this late in the run. The strongest performances come from Patricia Tonzi as the heartbroken Doris and John Webster as the hesitant and well-meaning Sam, while Elle Dreger is cute in her cameo appearance as the upstart Mildred.
While I was distracted at times and found the slow pacing of the show a hindrance, my companions for the evening enjoyed it, as did the audience around me. If the production manages to achieve higher energy, it's should prove an enjoyable distraction.
Production Details:
The Cemetery Club by Ivan
Menchell
Mesa Encore Theatre
The Mesa Arts Center, Mesa
(For a map to location,
click this
link)
(480) 834-9500 (option 1)
November 2nd - 18th, 2001