After seeing the above signs plastered all over the blue Santa Monica buses, Sarah and I decided to attend a performance of Our Town at a local theater a couple of weeks ago. This version, directed by David Cromer, had been showing previously in New York and got rave reviews for being a highly imaginative staging of the work. Having seen and read the play a couple of times before, as well as having watched a pretty good movie version, I was kind of curious to see what could possibly be done differently that would earn such accolades.
The play did not disappoint. The dialogue, setting, etc. were true to the play as originally written, but a few key adjustments made all the difference. Helen Hunt had the stage manager role, almost always given to a male and often played in a kind of folksy way, which she handled more matter-of-factly and pulled off nicely. So in addition to being a good citizen, thumbs up to Helen for her stage acting. The handling of the hymns and other music, which feature prominently in the play, was also pretty interesting.
However, without spoiling it, I will say that I was absolutely floored by the staging of the final act, which is formulated in a way that conveys the key themes of the play in a manner that has far more impact and resonance than the traditional staging. It was one of those situations where I would never have thought to do it David Cromer's way, but now, having seen it, I can't imagine why anyone would want to perform the play otherwise.
So if you ever have an opportunity to see David Cromer's version of Our Town, definitely take advantage of it.
