Review: 'Persephone' at Naugatuck Valley Community College

Dedicated to the memory of NVCC Professor Ruth M. Sasso, with love and gratitude

Waterbury, CT - PERSEPHONE (a new myth for a hotter world) is a new play written by Kristen Palmer. The playwright has worked with Sasha Bratt and his students at Naugatuck Valley Community College to produce the play locally so that she could work on the script as they rehearsed and have the opportunity to share the play with an audience.

“What I didn’t know was, how would the student actors react to working a new play? A play they’ve never heard of, can’t look at clips of, and with the playwright in the room mumbling to herself in the back, changing their lines on them, cutting their favorite parts just when they’d rehearsed them so beautifully? I needn’t have worried.” - Kristen Palmer in the printed program

The play was most certainly a unique experience for the college students, one that I predict they will appreciate long after they take off their costumes for the final time. To have been a part of the development of a new work is an honor, just as the experience of seeing a premiere of a brand new piece for review is special for a reviewer. Not easy, to be sure, but worth the time and effort. In the end, there was much that was impressive about the NVCC production and the audience at the second performance of the run that I attended clearly agreed when it was over.

“I have been so moved to witness these students’ work. They approached their characters and the story with curiosity and commitment. They’ve asked questions that have uncovered the play’s trajectory to me, deepened their performances and brought the beating heart of the play to the stage. They’ve shown up, brought their best and stepped in the process of new play development like they’d been doing if for years.” - Kristen Palmer

PERSEPHONE is based upon the ancient myth that attempts to explain the change of seasons on the earth. The title character is the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Demeter. Persephone, the personification of the earth’s vegetation, is abducted by Hades, the god of the underworld. She marries him, much to the dismay of her powerful mother, the goddess of the harvest and agriculture. Zeus orders that the goddess spend six months with her husband in the underworld after the harvest, followed by six months with her mother, bringing with her the season of spring to the earth. The second act of the play cleverly marries the ancient myth with the concept of global warming, as its subtitle suggests.

I couldn’t help but feel pride for the up and coming performers in the cast, only a few of whom I had seen in previous productions. They all rose to the challenge of the tone of the first act set in ancient times and then transitioned to contemporary times for the second act. The director must have worked closely with the playwright, who he described as a mentor and friend in his curtain speech, to bring a shared vision of the new work to beautiful life in the black box theatre on the NVCC campus. The set design by Bill Cone that was built by master carpenter Will Jeffries (who enjoyed the second performance from my row) was a virtual work of art and could not have been more appropriate for both the “ethereal plane” myth setting, which required a cave, nor the modern world scenes. Jyrel Hawk assisted Mr. Jeffries with the carpentry demands. What I would describe as broad strokes of latticework was both beautiful and constantly changing with the strong lighting design of technical coordinator Jonathan Curns. I liked the scene titles projected at the top of the set for both acts.

Fallon Dignan was the first to enter the stage in the big role of Demeter and her performance was professional enough to fill the important part. She fully embodied the character of Persephone’s possessive mother and notes in her bio her gratitude for making this play blossom beautifully into the world; this young performer earns a huge credit for the beauty of the action with her very strong performance and magnificent costumes. I look forward to seeing Ms. Dignan, who played Puck in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM at NVCC, in upcoming performances on any stage.

Jerusha Wright, who played Rudolpho in NewArt’s MATILDA, Wiesel in NEWSIES, and was also in LIBERTY SMITH, took on the title role of Persephone and seemed born to play the part. Ms. Wright is a first-year psychology major at NVCC and in her bio thanks the playwright for “writing this important play; it’s a privilege to bring it to life.” The latter she does extremely well.

Mitchell Wright grabbed hold of the role of Zeus and didn’t let go and also appeared as a strange pet named Trio. For interested fans, he notes that he will sign autographs after the show for a nominal fee.

Anthony Belske (who played the Wall in MIDSUMMER) is a second year Theatre major at NVCC. He played the role of Hades in a variety of red costumes and effectively tempted Persephone with a drippy pomegranate to win her heart. Lilliana Lopez, another second year theatre major, was able to shine in the role of Persephone’s chaperone named Jane, who becomes Demeter’s assistant in the second act.

Kerry Fitzmaurice, a Psychology major at NVCC in her second year, was a part of the ensemble who also played the fun role of Dr. O in the second act with aplomb. Anthony Lacerencza admirably appeared as Father, Aaron and in the ensemble with an easy stage presence in his sixth production at NVCC. Brianna Mattingly, who I remembered from her appearance as a Pink Panther in THE PINK PANTHER STRIKES AGAIN at Phoenix Stage Company, steps out of the ensemble to play a priestess.

Amelia McGee, a second year English and Theater major, stepped up to play Mother. Joshua Rodis, in his third year as a music and theatre double major, played the penitent in the first act. Mr. Rodis was Robin Starveling in MIDSUMMER and Henry in NEXT TO NORMAL. Matthew Taylor, new to the NVCC theatre program, played Man in his theatrical debut.

Sound design by Eyan Gormley worked very well and Brian Kelly was the supervisor for sound and the video that punctuated the action at just the right times. Costumes by Lisa Bebey were spectacular in every way, with the ancient designs draping is an ever so flattering manner and the contemporary ensembles suggesting the earthly rising temperatures.While I appreciated the beauty of everything worn by the mother of Persephone, my favorite was the ensemble that featured a black veil and full cape attached to its shoulders, a virtual work of art. Kudos to Murrae Tiano on collecting such a wide variety of props that worked perfectly.

PERSEPHONE is presented by the NVCC Arts Department and The Stage Society. Remaining performances are Oct. 26 at 7:30pm and Oct. 27 at 2:00pm in the Playbox Theater in the Fine Arts Building, Level 3, 750 Chase Parkway in Waterbury. The two acts fit neatly into two hours and the seating in the black box is comfortable. Tickets will be sold at the door .

Nancy Sasso Janis, writing theatre reviews since 2012 as a way to support local venues, posts well over 100 reviews each year. In 2016, her membership in the Connecticut Critics Circle began and her contributions of theatrical reviews, previews, and audition notices are posted not only in the Naugatuck Patch but also on the Patch sites closest to the venue. Follow the reviewer on her Facebook pages Nancy Sasso Janis: Theatre Reviewer and Connecticut Theatre Previews and on Twitter @nancysjanis417 Check out the NEW CCC Facebook page.

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