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By Archive
from Salem Monthly, Section News
Posted on Tue May 02, 2006 at 09:24:45 PM PDT
Drama proves fresh, thought-provoking for today’s audiencePentacle Theatre has done it again. Their current production, “Inherit the Wind,” gloriously captures the excitement of the original creationism/evolution schoolroom battle. The idea for “Inherit the Wind” was born out of the Scopes monkey trial of the 1920s, but it is not a historical re-enactment. This dramatization is about conflict in American culture, and it is as relevant today as it was in 1955.
The setting for the play is an old-fashioned courtroom. A sepia monochromatic effect sets the tone for the audience – the protagonist, Bertram Cates, is up against a heavy and oppressive enemy. The tone is definitely somber. Old wooden floors, wood desks and chairs, even a vertical wood background set the stage for a production that is anything but wooden.
The worst that can be said about this production is that the ensemble players are credible. I know, that’s not exactly an indictment, is it? The trouble is, there isn’t much to criticize. Yes, there were a few instances of opening night jitters – a missed or misspoken line here or there. But the mature theatre-goer expects to see this on opening night. In exchange, we enjoy high energy and a freshness of performance. Pentacle’s “Inherit the Wind” did not disappoint.
William Brown, Ken Hermens, and Larry Roach were outstanding. They didn’t just play lead roles, they inhabited their characters so fully that it was easy to forget that we were watching actors - it seemed that Matthew Harrison Brady, Rev. Jeremiah Brown, and Henry Drummond truly came to life before our eyes.
This isn’t only, or perhaps even primarily, a play about a historic event. This production speaks of life, and the continuous growth brought through living and thinking and caring. Toward the end of the play, the prosecuting attorney, Brady, laments to the defense attorney, Drummond, that once they were friends, but that they had grown apart, that Drummond has moved far away from Brady. Drummond responds, “Perhaps it is you that has moved away, by standing still.” A proverb tells us “he that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind.” The striving of intellectual curiosity and the drive to discover truth does propel us, over and over, into the winds of change. It’s a glorious and difficult ride, as this play reminds us.
“Inherit the Wind” runs through May 13. Tickets are available by calling (503) 364-7200. You may visit their Web site at www.pentacletheatre.org.
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