THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, June 8, 1995 TAG: 9506080446
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 59 lines
They put one another down, spew insults, bring up their miserable pasts and predict miserable futures.
They are playing mind games - supposedly.
The characters in ``Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' are like a quartet of Don Rickles.
For 2 1/2 hours they are at each others' throats, flushed with whiskey. The more they drink, the more they tear into each other, like tigers tearing into their catch.
The Encore Theatre production of the Edward Albee play is theater - the script and the performers - at its most excellent.
The characters are George and Martha (not Dennis the Menace's neighbors, for sure) and Nick and Honey.
George is the instigator of all that goes on, but the others quickly catch up, becoming almost as vocally venomous.
Butthey don't start that way. It is calm waters at first - then, a gentle bark here, another bark there, and the quartet is off and running. The humor has turned nasty.
They are equal opportunity insulters.
Shawn Smith, ECSU's director of drama, portrays George - coldly, cunningly, calculatingly - in a manner that would make Albee proud.
He is the finest kind of professional actor. Offstage, he's a really nice guy, but onstage, he's convincingly evil.
``Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' is a success because of the ensemble work. Everyone in the cast is intriguing and impressive.
Deborah E. Parker, as Martha, daughter of the president of the university where her less-than-successful husband toils, is outstanding
- particularly during a lengthy Act III diatribe and a sensuous dance scene.
Outstanding and unforgettable, she offers a performance to remember.
The couple whom George and Martha turn on is Nick and Honey. Nick also teaches at the institute of higher learning. Honey is a delightful ditz.
Sugary as they are when they first appear, they soon turn tail and toss the insults like old hats. Again, heavy drink is to blame.
Jim Roberts, in a fine performance, takes a low-key approach with Nick. He is Mr. Nice Guy until he reaches the breaking point. One putdown too many and he becomes as mean as everybody else.
Finally, there is his wife, Honey. Laura Tanton puts on a honey of a show, running the gamut from sweet and sober to soused and silly. She is a convincing charismatic character whose claim to fame seems to be her ability to throw up.
There are laughs in this production, but they often come to a screeching halt when the characters wallow in insult.
Two lines sum up the mood of ``Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?''
Jim looks at the others and says, ``You're all crazy.''
Martha replies, ``Sad, but true.'' by CNB