[NEohioPAL] Review of "Our Town" at Blank Canvas Theatre

[Bob Abelman via NEohioPAL]

Less is not more in Blank Canvas’ staging of ‘Our Town’



Bob Abelman

Cleveland Jewish News, The News Herald, The Morning Journal

Member, International Association of Theatre Critics





There is an absolutely beguiling simplicity in the prose, structure and traditional staging of Thornton Wilder’s 1938 Pulitzer Prize-winning “Our Town,” currently in production at Blank Canvas Theatre. 



Because of this stark simplicity, “Our Town” has become a staple in countless high schools and community theaters.  The writing is so good and the plain-folk characters are so clearly defined that the play can easily endure, and potentially benefit from, unrefined amateur performances of it.



Professional productions tend to tweak the casting or context in order to add to the play’s poignancy, relevancy and theatricality.  A recent off-Broadway revival went so far as to break Wilder’s minimalism mandate by introducing a realistic set in a scene where one of the dead revisits the living, in order to dramatically accentuate the divide between life and death.



The tweaks performed for Blank Canvas’ rendition, under Patrick Ciamacco’s direction, are minor by comparison and of the subtle variety. They serve to make a simple production simpler still, with mixed results.  



For the rest of this review, go to www.clevelandjewishnews.com/columnists/
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