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| Diane Cary and John Mawson - Photos by Mia Christou |
By Joe Straw
Stephen Sachs, the writer of Bakersfield Mist, was said to have co-founded The Fountain Theatre in 1990 from various sources but the theatre was there long before that. I produced a play at The Fountain in 1986, The Gentlemen’s Club by David Michael Wieger.
Prior to that, Last Summer at Bluefish Cove by Jane Chambers played at The Fountain for in 1981 for two and one-half years.
Jerry Holland was running the operations then.
Perhaps The Fountain Theatre was reborn in 1990. Something is awry in the printed history of Stephen Sachs and The Fountain Theatre. Something that needs investigating. - Narrator
Maude Gutman (Diane Cary) has lived a sad life. This is just an observation, as no one can really know what this woman has gone through. She was a bartender, under what circumstance of her leaving that job is a matter up to interpretation. But one thing is true, her bartending life was recently cut short and so now she resides in a trailer in Bakersville, California, baking inside this tin can like a grilled cheese sandwich in a toaster over. Oh, the unbearable sweltering heat.
Outside are imagined trailers and the rock hard dog droppings still baking in the desert sun.
Visible Ink and the Beverly Hills Playhouse presents Bakersfield Mist written by Stephen Sachs, produced by Mia Christou and directed by Amir Korangy through July 28, 2019.
The fruit of Maude’s labor sits on shelves, bottles of whiskey, an arcade of benign cat figurines looking out to anyone passing by. All of these items are just trinkets, accumulated from the eight or so Good Will stores that litter the Bakersville area. The show, the main attraction, something she bought for three dollars is in the other room, under a blanket, is waiting to be rediscovered all over again.
And so Maude waits in a skin tight red shirt, torn jeans, with muscular tattooed arms, and delicate golden nails for someone special at this point in her life and she is hoping he is prompt in his appointment, and lastly, on her side.
Lionel Percy (John Mawson) steps out of his chauffeured driven car. He is suddenly surrounded and chased by dogs, possibly the small garden-variety dogs with more bark than bite, still he runs, beyond the screen door, into the trailer, panting heavily, and claiming he is about to have a heart attack.
Ushered inside Lionel wheezes, and coughs trying to maintain a certain bit of decorum. He is a bit stodgy an art connoisseur from back east and an expert in Jackson Pollack’s paintings.
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| Diane Cary and John Mawson |
Despite being disheveled, Lionel is wearing a very fine black suit, red bow tie, and blue argyle socks. With him, he carries a briefcase with precious and unusual side locks for which documents have been carefully prepared and are waiting for a signature before his work is done. Expedience, in this environment, is the nature of his game. But he has a job to do before he can get out of this god-forsaken hole.
He is reserved, lays out the rules of his employment, and presents the documents to be signed.
But, Maude is not so eager to show him the painting, not just yet. She wants information on the worth of an original painting by Jackson Pollack and what she could fetch if the painting is indeed a Jackson Pollack.
Lionel presents an astronomical figure if it were an original.
One supposes that Maude mentally salivates thinking how the money would get her out of the trailer and into better accommodations.
But first Lionel needs to see the painting.
One can see why actors enjoy Stephen Sachs’ play. It’s fun and has a few twists and turns in an eighty-minute show. There are critics out there who grouse about the plausibility of the play but, in reality, the play is more than the painting. It’s about two souls testing each other to the limits and for that it is a marvelous production.
Diane Cary is a physical specimen as Maude Gutman as she effortlessly moves about the stage. Her craft is solid and backstory is significant if sometimes ambiguous. There is a tremendous life in Maude, a woman who makes the most of her situation. Diane plays Maude as a smart woman, someone who is on top of her game. Maude will never let up until she gets what she wants including performing a sex act with the man who will give her a favorable outcome to what she wants. Really, it’s not a way to go if the proof is in the pudding. But Maude’s modus operandi is to hire an expert with a flaw, one that has a dubious past, add liquor to the mix, and viola. Then, she uses that flaw to get what she wants, a piece of paper, or an affidavit to claim the painting is genuine. Maude is a very smart woman who is a victim of her own unfortunate luck of her own creation.
John Mawson as Lionel Percy looks too healthy to be panting at the beginning of this piece. Being chased by dogs leaves little room to notice the landscape, the trailer, and the situation where all of the negotiations take place. Once Lionel has made the decision on the painting, he should leave, but that would be the end of the play. He is captured by his dubious past, a mistake he once made, one he wishes not to repeat, and so he stays to make absolutely sure. Lionel seems steadfast in his opinion of the piece and never waivers one bit but there is a life on the other end of his opinion and one that needs another level of scrutiny and curiosity.
Amir Korangy, the director, stages a superior production. The objectives were clear, the actors knew where they were going and they worked well together. But, in the early part of this two-week run, there was something missing. There is another level of concentration to add, of thoughts that keep the actors engaged in a relationship that is constantly changing. Those are the moments that change the relationship and move the play to its ultimate conclusion.
The painting Bakersfield Mist (36” X 48” acrylic and varnish on canvas) was by Mia Christou and plays an important part in this production. It is beautiful and in its own right, a work of art.
Mia Christou Set Design works well with the actors.
Other members of the crew are as follows:
Derrick McDaniel - Lighting Design
Benjamin Burt - Stage Manager
Ken Werther Publicity - Press Representative
Giles Masters - Poster
Run! Run! And take a friend who loves to go to the museums.
Beverly Hills Playhouse
254 S. Robertson Boulevard
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Call: 800-838-3006