Review: 'One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest' at Playhouse on Park

…one flew east, one flew west,
One flew over the cuckoo’s nest.

West Hartford, CT - Playhouse on Park opened its production of ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST on Saturday. Ezra Barnes directed this adaptation by Dale Wasserman that is based upon the classic novel by Ken Kesey.

This is the hard-to-forget story of a mental hospital and the patients and staff members that inhabit it. When the brash new inmate arrives, the rigid program of the ward, which is headed by the tyrannical (and aptly named) Nurse Ratched, is thrown up for grabs. In a world where sanity means conformity and therefore following the rules is the only way to survive, the play is a powerful exploration of both the beauty and the danger of being an original.

It is loud, a bit ribald and in the end shattering, and I quickly realized that I had not watched as much of the film as I had thought. I have read that this Tony-award winning adaption pays homage to the original storytelling of the classic novel, while adding a chilling, poignant edge, but I cannot confirm or deny this because of my apparent lack of familiarity with the source material. I still found it be a moderately compelling tale with a strong dose of social commentary on the state of mental health facilities back in the day.

Equity actor Santos (just Santos) embodied the role of the narrator Chief Bromden and only broke the fourth wall when he accidentally knocked over a card table stored against one of the large posts that stand at the front corners of the stage. This role marks his CT debut.

Equity actor Wayne Willinger tackled the role of Randle Patrick McMurphy (the role that Jack Nicholson made famous) and he did a fine job in his Playhouse on Park debut.

What a treat it was see Justin Henry, often seen at Seven Angels, Landmark and Connecticut Theatre Company, in the role of Aide Williams in his Playhouse on Park debut. Lance Williams was his coworker Aide Warren.

Equity member Patricia Randell (Playhouse on Park debut) made Nurse Ratched, a former Army nurse, both stern and determined to stay in charge of every situation. She confidently made the “Big Nurse” plenty big. Katya Collazo was most effective in her Playhouse on Park debut as the mousy and devout Nurse Flinn and also covered the role of the partygirl Sandra in a completely different outfit.

Adam Kee was a standout in the role of the closeted patient Dale Harding in his Playhouse on Park debut. Alex Rafala (THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK) was also very good as the stuttering Billy Bibbitt. Rick Malone returned to Playhouse on Park to take on the role of Charles Cheswick and John Ramaine made his Playhouse on Park debut as the patient Frank Scanlon.

The delusional Mr. Martini was played by Harrison Greene, who holds his BFA in acting from UConn where he also studied Puppet Arts, and Ben McLaughlin, who studied theatre at CCSU, was a Chronic patient with a botched lobotomy named Ruckley. David Sirois played the psychiatrist Dr. Spivey and Andrew R. Cooksey Jr. played the nighttime aide Turkel in his Playhouse on Park debut.

Athena Reddy added plenty of color as Candy Starr in her debut with Playhouse on Park, although the unfortunate red wig she wore was less than flattering. Ben McLaughlin played a medical technician.

Lighting designer Aaron Hochheiser helped make some transitions clearer and scenic designer brought us into the day room of an old state mental hospital somewhere in the 1960s in the Pacific Northwest. Costumes designed by Michele Sansone completely matched the tenor of the action, as did the props and set dressing by Eileen O’Connor.

If you go, don’t forget to check out the lobby display and vote for your favorite of the top ten Playhouse on Park shows. Tix $30-$40, all seats reserved Senior, Student & Let's Go Arts discounts available. Special Tuesday Matinee tix $22.50, all seats reserved

Nancy Sasso Janis has been writing theatre reviews since 2012 as a way to support local theatre venues. She posts reviews of well over 100 productions each year. In 2016, she became a member of the Connecticut Critics Circle.She continues to contribute theatre news, previews, and audition notices to local Patch sites. Reviews of all levels of theatrical productions are posted on Naugatuck Patch and the Patch sites closest to the venue. Follow the reviewer on her Facebook pages Nancy Sasso Janis: Theatre Reviewer and on Twitter @nancysjanis417 Check out the NEW CCC Facebook page.