A Good Script Can Go A Long Way

By Darcie Flansburg
The Real Critics Editor/Publisher

A finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2005, "The Clean House" breaks the Play With Your Food Production conventions of producing knock-down, drag-out comedies. The script alone is a hearty venture; Sarah Ruhl's contemporary American stage comedy elicits both laughter and earnest tears.

Matilde is a maid who is saddened by the act of cleaning. Her parents were the funniest people in Brazil until they died; then the title fell upon Matilde. Not able to handle the pressure Matilde moved to America and happens upon the wrong house; a house where laughter is rare.

Matilde's boss Lane is a doctor, as is Lane's husband Charles. Lane is rarely home, but her sister, Virginia, is a housewife with time to spare. Soon enough Virginia is cleaning Lane's house and spending time with Matilde and they both learn some things about Lane's life that makes them all feel quite uncomfortable.

Annalice Heinz was enchanting as the jocular Matilde. Everything from her accent to the emotional ping-pong she emanated was not only entertaining, but touching. Theatre goers both during the show and after could not stop talking about "that maid" and how "lovely" she was. And it was true; I have seen Heinz on stage before and she never disappoints. There is something to be said for actors that study psychology, they know how to get into the mind of the character and beautifully transpose it onto the stage.

But Matilde isn't the only one with jokes. Virginia has the jokes that most of the audience can really relate to. Because the script is so well written a mild delivery of Virginia's lines would still evoke laughter, but there is still so much that can be done with the character.

Laurel Mueller was a strong choice for the part of Virginia; her delivery and presence were very natural on stage, but almost too casual. Mueller seemed more conscious of her own person than of the character that she was creating. She moved hesitantly on stage and didn't take many chances in her delivery or actions. There is a moment in the play when the very clean Virginia has a small breakdown and starts tearing the house apart. This was an opportunity for Mueller to really let loose, but her movements were stifled and for a moment it looked more like she was lightly rearranging small items in the main room rather than "making a mess."

Alicia Panicucci's performance as Lane was also somewhat constrained. Even after finding out that her husband was having an affair Panicucci's Lane seemed more conflicted than angry.

One of the aspects of Ruhl's style that was strongly maintained in this production was her focus on the inexplicable transformation of emotions. Heinz portrayed these transformations throughout the play, but Panicucci's shining moment was what I will call "the laughing/crying bit." Ruhl loves when plays have "revelations in the moment," which is what Lane experiences in this particular scene. The stage directions read "Lane cries. She laughs. She cries. She laughs. And this goes on for some time." It was in this moment that Panicucci showed true abandon as an actor, laughing and crying hysterically.

The cast was rounded out with Russ Rappel Schmid as Charles and Julie Stouse as Ana.

Stouse, like Heinz, accomplished a strong Portuguese accent and exuded a charm that made Charles' rash decisions plausible. Schmid and Stouse had great chemistry, not only as Ana and Charles, but also as the various ensemble characters they portrayed throughout the play.

But despite their chemistry, the couples love fizzled rather than climaxed toward the end of the play, unnecessarily. (*Spoiler Alert*) When Charles returns home with a yew tree for Ana, only to find that she has laughed herself to death Schmid should have exhaled a groan of utter despair and lost love, but instead he just seemed kind of disappointed. His expression seemed to say, "oh, dang."

Director Christopher "Kit" Fugrad used the stage well, but, at times, the blocking was stationary and unmotivated. This was, in part, due to the stage design and the limited space. Though the set design, by Laura and Murray Robitaille, was beautiful and pristine, the placement of the balcony made some of the blocking awkward. For example, when Matilde and Ana threw apples off the balcony and into "the sea," each one hit the stage with a thud that really pulled the audience out of the moment. Also the transitions between the house and the balcony were rather distracting.

But a good script can go a long way and despite minor shortcomings Play With Your Food Productions, under Fugrad's direction, presented a noteworthy show that kept it's audience laughing and invested in the story. The June 11 audience heartily laughed at Matilde's jokes, and Virginia's cleaning analogies, but also felt the pain of Lane's loss and understood the wisdom in the dramatic ironies presented in the plot. Play With Your Food Productions added this show to their season at the last minute and it was a worthy gamble.

Play With Your Food Productions opens it's 8th season with "Weekend Comedy" in October. Visit www.playwithyourfoodproductions.com for details.