2023 National Women’s Theatre Festival (Part 2)
The mission of the National Women’s Theatre Festival is to create, produce, and promote extraordinary theatre by women and artists of all underrepresented genders with the ultimate goal of 100% parity in the US theatre industry. They gather artists from North Carolina and across the nation at their annual festival, helping to create a pipeline of extraordinary talent that will revolutionize theatre as we know it.
Moon Glo
Having recently admitted out loud that I’ve just finished my first play at age 61, I was keenly interested in checking out Moon Glo. This script in development has been penned by 94 year old retired drama professor Patsy Clarke. The adage “write what you know” rings loudly here as the characters are her current peers.
Barbara is struggling with her new situation. After rehabilitation following a fall, she has been “put somewhere”. She refers to the Morningside nursing home as Moon Glo. “You can almost see but not quite”. “You can almost take care of yourself but not quite”. The language is evocative.
The group meets for dinner every day. The quibbles are routine and repeated lending an ear of authenticity while also providing multiple laughs about mandarin oranges. Serious issues such as dementia and Parkinson’s pepper these conversations.
Ms. Clarke has her character ask, “Do you think there’s any benefit talking about the mysteries of life?” After watching this nicely performed play, the answer should be yes. There are many people who would benefit considering how these women process past glories alongside the hard realizations of the inevitable approaching.
Extra kudos for the gorgeous monologue about Pockets the Clown and a momentary ray of sunshine from the wailing banshee. Barbara asks “Is there something beyond this life?” None of us know, indeed. Because we are still living, however, we can certainly experience all of it from start to finish if we are able and choose to do so.
Reverie
From 94 years old to the bright young age of 7, this next show at WTF is an original musical by Ashley Cooper. The definition of reverie is being pleasantly lost in one’s thoughts. Daydreams feature prominently in this piece but there is also a palpable sense of grief and loss.
Genevieve is a smart, happy young girl. She and two friends open the show making up a song about Summertime. The mood is free spirited fun, filled with giggles and creative expression. When she arrives home we learn that her father is in “a healing place”. She misses him badly. Her 17 year old brother Gerald spills the beans that their father is dead.
Mom was in the business of protecting her too young daughter from facing this fairly recent tragedy. What follows is a study of the mental strain in processing an enormous emotional trauma. Genevieve begins obsessing on the captured cell phone memories with her Dad. The proximity to realness is heartwarming in its display of paternal love. These imaginary escapes become an outlet with both positive and negative aspects.
The book effectively conjures a world of this age group from preadolescent worries to classroom anxieties. Everyone seems realistic due to good performances. Details are a major plus such as the reference to Daddy’s “cocoa slides”. Imagery evokes a strong connection to closeknit relationships. Even more added color would pull these emotional souls into three dimensional depth.
Reverie feels more like a play with music than a musical. That may be because the storyline is such a serious exploration of what a tragic moment would mean to someone so very young. I was also forced to imagine (at a much older age) what it would be like to experience Genevieve’s grief with always available text messages, photos and videos at my fingertips. Reverie contains important dialogue about mental health and is impressively nuanced to reach a vulnerable age group.
The 8th Annual WTF is running from June 22 through July 1, 2023 at North Carolina State University’s Frank Thompson Hall. Many performances are available online via livestream or prerecorded video.