‘Greetings’ Brings Holiday Spirit This Charming Christmas Story Is Brought To Life By A Skilled Director And A Cast Of Five
In the tradition of Charles Dickens and Jimmy Stewart, here comes “Greetings” at the Interplayers Ensemble.
While it might not live up to the precedents set by Bob Cratchit, George Bailey, or even Scrooge McDuck, this Tom Dudzick comedy is a charming and funny Christmas fable. I’m not certain I understood the play’s convoluted metaphysics, but I certainly enjoyed its humor and its overall message of tolerance and kindness.
The set-up sounds like one of those Alan Ayckbourn dysfunctional family nightmares. Andy Gorski (William Westenberg) and his fiance Randi Stein (Susan Mansefield) are flying home to spend Christmas with his conservative Catholic parents in Pittsburgh.
When they get there, it soon becomes clear that this is not going to be a Norman Rockwell Christmas. The father (Cheyenne Wilbur) is a bigot who makes Archie Bunker sound like Stuart Smalley. He has a tendency to refer to his son’s fiancee as “you people,” as in, “You know what really bothers me about you people?”
When he finds out Randi is Jewish, he is obnoxious enough, but his kettle really boils over when he finds out Randi is also an atheist. The acrimony builds and builds until, finally, the father orders her out of his house.
And at that point, the magic takes over.
I will not give it away, except to say it involves a miraculous change in Andy’s retarded brother, Mickey. The final two-thirds of the play is far more sweet fable than bitter farce, and in the hands of director Joan Welch, this change of pace is smooth, unforced, and utterly enjoyable.
The five-person acting ensemble is strong all the way through. Gail Smith Reynolds, as the mother, continues to impress me with her ability to play difficult and subtle roles. This long-suffering peacemaker of the family emerges as the most believable and sympathetic character in the play.
Mansefield brings her usual intelligence and talent to the role of Randi. In the first act she might want to tone down the Julia Louis-Dreyfuss mannerisms, but in the second act she goes credibly from skepticism, to stunned disorientation, to acceptance.
Westenberg successfully goes through the same transformation. In the first act, he is completely believable as the frustrated son, who sees his big engagement announcement greeted with stony silence.
Cheyenne Wilbur, fresh from an inspired performance as Malvolio in “Twelfth Night,” is equally impressive as the embittered father. The meanness is there in his eyes, which makes his eventual transformation late in the play even more impressive.
The biggest transformation, and the biggest acting accolades, go to Greg Foran, as Mickey. Foran plays the severely retarded character straight, with no hint of exploitation or condescension. After the character’s transformation into something utterly different, Foran’s acting feat seems even more impressive.
The script is sometimes a little too pat, and it also relies on some fuzzy New Age-like philosophy, which was neither well-reasoned nor well-explained. However, I am willing to forgive it, because as far as I can tell, the philosophy boiled down to these Christmas-like sentiments: Be tolerant of others and be grateful for their sacrifices.
And, as Scrooge himself once discovered, the holiday spirit sometimes comes in the form of a holiday Spirit.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo
MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: “Greetings” through Dec. 16, at the Interplayers Ensemble, call 455-PLAY