Southampton Cultural Center Presents "Crimes of the Heart"

Beth Henley’s, 1979 Pulitzer Prize-winning dramedy, Crimes of the Heart, is playing now through January 28 at the Southampton Cultural Center. This play is a great vehicle for women actresses with it’s rich parts, and this production was aptly directed by Joan M. Lyons.

This three-act Black comedy takes place in the 1970’s in Hazelhurst, Mississippi, and the plot revolves around the reuniting of three southern sisters: Lenny, Meg, and Babe. They were raised in an over-the-top dysfunctional family, where “crimes of the heart” were committed against each other on a daily basis.

The entire play takes place in one locale: a kitchen in the modest home that Lenny shares with her cantankerous grandfather, and the entire action takes place over the course of a day. And, what a hell of a day it was: It’s Lenny’s birthday and she is feeling lonely, old, and melancholic; grandpa’s on his death bed, Meg has just gotten out of a mental hospital, and sister Babe needs bailing out of jail.

Be forewarned: the play deals with some heavy topics -- suicide, violence, mental illness, and pedophilia. Although this play garnished many awards in the 70’s and 80’s, time has not served this play well. With the #MeToo movement in full force right now, I found it hard to have any sympathy for Babe, an unhappily married woman, who is sexually involved with an under-aged teenage boy. Throughout the play, she continually reminds us that she is, “Having a really bad day,” but she fails to fully comprehend that it is her actions that have brought her life to such a dismal reality. Still, Tina Marie Realmuto, as Babe, does manage to pull our heartstrings as she delivers several moving monologues.

Bonnie Grice, an East End personality, is riveting as Meg, a down-and-out singer, who seeks solace in booze and cigarettes. Ms. Grice uses her sultry voice like a fine-tuned instrument, as she delivers her lines from the very depth of her soul.

Josephine Wallace is very believable as Lenny, a woman who has been dealt a bad hand in life, and who longs for love and recognition.

Kristin Whiting’s portrayal of the busybody, know-it-all cousin, Chick Boyle, gets some of the biggest belly laughs of the play. Ms. Whiting is a master of physical comedy, and she is a force to be reckoned with whenever she is onstage.

The other two players in this tight-knit ensemble are Deyo Trowbridge, who is charming in his role as Barnette Lloyd, a young lawyer with a personal vendetta, and Mark Strecker. who brings an earthy warmth to the role of Doc Porter.

For ticket information call 631-287-4377 or go to scc-arts.org.

Cindi Sansone-Braff is and award-winning playwright and author of “Grant Me a Higher Love,” and “Why Good People Can’t Leave Bad Relationships.” She has a BFA in theatre from the University of Connecticut. Tomorrow’s Classic Theatre Company recently produced her full-length play, “Beethoven’s Promethean Concerto in C Minor,” a theatrical tribute to the man, the myth, the music, which picked up an Encore Award.