'Trelawny of the Wells' Pays Tribute to Theater, Audience

The first half-century at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey is coming to a close this month with a production that pays homage not only to the players on the stage, but the people in the seats.

Calling it a play she’s wanted to do for 30 years, Artistic Director Bonnie J. Monte’s rare revival of Arthur Wing Pinero’s “Trelawny of the Wells” gives us actors playing actors and, as this milestone season concludes, a glimpse into why they do what they do.

While casual viewers may miss some of the backstage in-jokes and personality quirks one expects to find in the dramatic world, anyone who has ever been a part of an improvised family—be it at work, in a neighborhood or elsewhere—can identify with the conflicts and camaraderie of this slightly batty troupe of artists.

As for passionate theater fans—particularly those who have come to love this particular repertory family in Madison—the journey is not complete without witnessing this warm, shiny gem of a comedy, which features several of Monte’s favorite actors, most of whom have done their best work under her guidance.

Dating back to the late 19^th century, Pinero’s gang is far removed from London’s West End. They toil in the second-tier Barridge Wells Theatre. They’ve gathered in the somewhat weathered home of Mr. and Mrs. Telfer (John Fitzgibbon and Elizabeth Shepherd), where many of their fellow actors board, including ingénue Rose Trelawny (Nisi Sturgis). They are tearfully bidding farewell to Rose, a budding young star who is giving up the theater life to marry Arthur Gower (Jordan Coughtry), a doting swell from a stuffy Victorian family.

The troupe is troubled by the loss of their star as many of the individuals relate their own problems. Tom Wrench (John Patrick Hayden) can’t get a worthy role and nobody will read his play. Ferdinand Gadd (John Barker) has a flair for the dramatic that is insulted by being forced to play in the pantomime (a traditional holiday musical comedy, not the clown-trapped-in-a-box kind) or get the sack.

They are joined by Imogen Parrot (Carlyn Kozlowski), a former mate who managed to advance to the West End and at least some semblance of respectability from the vagabond life of most actors.

Rose and Arthur share a true love, but Rose cannot stomach the dreadful silence in the Gower’s upper-crust digs, where Arthur’s grandfather, Sir William (Edmond Genest) and great aunt Trafalgar (Shepherd again) enforce Victorian manners like drill sergeants. Arthur’s sister (Erica Knight) and her husband (Matt Sullivan) already have been beaten into submission, but Rose rebels and expresses herself once too often, particularly in a scene where her drunken friends improvise a cast party in the Gower parlor.

The confrontation leads to a split between the young lovers, but when the troupe rallies to produce Tom’s play, much merry is made on the way to a conclusion as warm and comforting as brandied eggnog.

By Monte’s own director’s notes admission, Pinero serves a fair share of froth on the side and, especially for viewers who are resistant to the magic of live theater, the story at times flirts with banality. Fortunately, Monte’s cast—stuffed with ringers like Kozlowski, Barker, Shepherd, Sullivan and the incomparable Genest—could charm Anne Coulter into endorsing a Kennedy.

At the center of this ensemble cast is another treat. As many of the company’s loyal fans know, Sturgis (“A Streetcar Named Desire,” “Arms and the Man”) and Coughtry (“Romeo and Juliet,” “Amadeus”) are not only brilliant lead actors, but are a couple in real life and they share a strong chemistry onstage as well. Sturgis is a joy as she teeters between propriety and her “gypsy troubadour” passion, while Coughtry, in a more subdued role, manages to slay the audience with a speech that proves his character is no orator.

Regardless of your orientation, it all works and ties a colorful and merry bow to another splendid season on the boards in Madison. If the next 50 years here are anything like the last, the classics will remain in good hands.

 “Trelawny of the Wells” runs through Dec. 30 at the F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre, 36 Madison Ave. at Drew University, Madison. Tickets are $32 to $70 (student rush tickets $10 30 minutes prior to curtain, subject to availability). For more information, call 973-408-5600 or visit www.shakespearenj.org.