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NAKED GODDESS PRODUCTIONS

The Woolgatherer
by William Mastrosimone

Directed by Karen Hamm

Dates May 10-20, 2006 Venue Beaumont Studios, 316 West 5th Avenue, Vancouver

Reviewer Ed Farolan


Atreus poster
Sandra Medeiros and Sean Tyson

First produced in New Jersey in 1979, this play by American playwright William Mastrosimone (b.1947) is about a hard drinking and hard working truck driver who drifts into the life of a shy salesgirl.

He has written more than a dozen plays, and from watching this play, I'd say he's good. If a script is good, most often, a production, especially with good actors like Sandra Medeiros (Rose) and Sean Tyson (Cliff) will succeed.

And that's what happened at opening night at Beaumont Playhouse, a tiny theatre sitting only around 50 people. That's all you need if you have a play with only two actors. But the opening night crowd was quite pleased with this piece. In fact, there was laughter, there were bravos, two curtain calls, and a few who stood up to show their appreciation for a production well-cast and excellently directed.

Medeiros, in her program notes, comments that she's loved this play for so many years and that it "is a dream come true." She was ideal for the part: wiry, petite, vulnerable, a bit naive about life, engrossed in her romantic dreams. Tyson, who has been in theatre for twenty years, was perfectly typecast as Cliff, the rough, beer-drinking truck driver, but with a soft spot for Rose.

Congratulations to the actors for a great performance, to Director Karen Hamm (who has acted and directed professionally with different companies all over Canada for casting the right actors for this production, and also to the production staff for a job well done.

© 2006 Ed Farolan