THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, November 10, 1995 TAG: 9511080160
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 04 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Theater Review
SOURCE: Montague Gammon III
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
The Little Theatre of Portsmouth has risen quite strikingly to meet the challenge of staging Herb Gardner's demanding play, ``I'm Not Rappaport.''
One especially heartfelt and authentic characterization, together with the design and execution of the set, provide a core for the strongest show this group has mounted in recent memory.
The story follows two 80-year-old men who encounter one another on a Central Park bench. One, Midge, is black. He is tenuously holding onto his building superintendent job, hiding from the tenants the fact that he is nearly blind from cataracts and glaucoma.
The other man is white. A wisecracking, spirited old-time left-wing radical still living the early years of the labor movement, he is most notably a spinner of tall tales. Only at the end of the show does he reveal that his real name is, probably, Nat.
At various times, Nat impersonates a CIA agent, a labor lawyer, and a Mafia hit man. He tries to help Midge with his job situation, tries to drive away a young punk who runs a protection racket in the park, and tries to bluff a drug dealer.
He also keeps up a witty and insightful commentary upon the perils of aging and about radical politics. ``Nostalgia kills more of us than heart failure,'' he remarks. He tells his yuppie daughter that she has abandoned ``Marx and Lenin for Bergdorf and Goodman.''
Jim Luker presents a sensitive, acutely realized, and touchingly convincing performance as Nat. So much of what he says, as Nat, seems full of the utmost sincerity. He has clearly found, within himself, a close connection to the character where he can ground his performance.
Robert Wilson, in the role of Midge, got an enthusiastic ovation opening night. His performance will appeal most strongly to those who rate acting by the amount of effort an actor displays as he indicates his character's physical peculiarities.
Familiar LTP performers Marti Craver, Bill Abrams and Jim DiMunno appear as Nat's daughter, as the head of Midge's tenants association and as a drug dealer.
Two newcomers to this theater, Brittany Haller and Greg Provance, show ample potential in their brief roles of a drug addict and a young thug. Provance especially captures the simple-minded menace of his character.
The set, designed by Don Bowers and painted by Kathleen Carlson, is notably convincing because, like Luker's acting, it pays particular attention to details. While continued observation suggests that it was built from bottom to top and finished in some haste, it is still a high point for the Little Theater's technical staff. That staff includes DiMunno and Chris Kaczmarek who are credited with constructing the set, and lighting designer Ross Creecy. Stan Baranowski directed.
Luker, Bowers and Carlson have set a higher standard than that to which the little theater has usually been held. By that standard, it must be said that there were some rough edges to this production on opening night. Nonetheless, the show marks a big step forward for the Little Theater of Portsmouth and merits attention.
The show marks a big step forward for the Little Theatre of Portsmouth and merits attention. ILLUSTRATION: AT A GLANCE
What: ``I'm Not Rappaport.''
Where: Little Theatre of Portsmouth, Wilson High School
Auditorium, 1401 Elmhurst Lane.
When: 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday.
Tickets: $7 for adults, and $6 for seniors, students and enlisted
military. Call 488-7866.
by CNB