DTC’s The Constant Wife a comedy of manners

By Burt Saidel

The Dayton Theatre Guild is the most venerable company among the many regional theaters in the area.  I have been attending the Guild since my high school days approaching six decades.  During that span, they have mounted many unforgettable plays, and a few clinkers.

To open this season, Somerset Maugham’s The Constant Wife represented a challenge of a different sort.  This type of play, a comedy of manners, a period piece, is perfect for the actors of the Guild.  

The challenge in this case was a personal one.  In 2005, I had seen a stunning production of The Constant Wife at the Shaw Festival in Canada.  Annual visits to the “Shaw” generally include six plays in two or three days.  For some reason, the Maugham play loomed large in our memory.  Each of the actors was familiar to us in other roles and each created an excellent portrayal.  

By the same token, the cast members of the Guild production were long-time favorites.  We were loathe to have to compare them to seasoned professionals particularly in dealing with the subtleties of the English parlor genre.

With a sigh of chauvinistic relief, I am happy to report that the Guild production was every bit as exciting and compelling as that at the Shaw Festival.  Each play had significant differences, strengths and emphases.   Each will be another well-remembered theater experience.

The play is almost typical Maugham.  Usually Maugham’s aim is for a very dramatic revelation, a twist which shocks the reader or viewer into a form of submission.  I grew very tired of this literary ploy many years ago.  As the characters do their domestic battle in The Constant Wife, the twists are not only subtle but very rewarding.

Constance is married to John, a successful surgeon in the 1927 proper English milieu.  Her life is, to all appearances, perfection.  Her house is a show-place.  Her child, well cared for by the nanny until packed off to boarding school, represents no interference with Constance’s life style.  

Days are spent with friends, shopping and preparing for the social events, which are the punctuation of their lives.  Enter the crisis.  Constance’s sister and a well meaning friend are intent on revealing that faithful husband John is having an affair with Constance’s best friend, Marie Louise.

Their shock and dismay is well seasoned with quite a bit of glee to see that the ideal Constance is not quite so perfect after all.  Mother, the pragmatist having survived her marriage with a dull but rich husband, is now enjoying widowhood.  Her philosophy is simple, “Don’t fret about affairs, that is what men do rather than bother their wives.”

It turns out that Constance is not so naïve or idealistic after all.  She, in the most charming language ala Shaw, Coward and Maugham, has all under complete control.  She emerges as a woman of strength and considerable guile, worthy of the 21st century.

The Guild play was directed by theater icon Greg Smith.  He was blessed by a perfect set designed by another icon, Blake Senseman.  

The cast was led by Cassandra Engber as Constance.  She is a beautiful young woman whose many roles at the Guild have proved that she is a fine actress as well.  Barbara Jorgenson, always a great stage character, made the mother really “zing.”  Comparative newcomer Kevin Rankin was a convincing husband John and Michael Boyd, in flowing locks courtesy of the wigmaker, was a bang-up long, but not lost, lover.  Molly Burgo, Wendi Michael, Angela Timpone, Mark Diffenderfer and Rick Flynn all added to the fun.

The play runs through Sept. 16.  It really is a “don’t miss.”

Anne Pesch in the Big Apple

One of Dayton’s finest actors is young Anne Pesch. From her pre-teens, she mesmerized audiences in leading roles at many theaters including Wright State.  There is so much to remember about Annie’s pre-career career here in Dayton. Her one woman show, The Belle of Amherst, the life of Emily Dickinson, was one of the finest theater experiences I will ever have.

Now, she is in New York breaking into show business like thousands of others. Unlike the thousands of hopefuls, she is Anne Pesch – a mega talent.

Since arriving in the Big Apple last winter, she has been working in theater almost continuously.  She has attracted the attention of such luminaries as Suzanne Bradbeer and Jay Hanagan.  She has had roles in workshops, several new works at the Ensemble Studio Theatre and will be appearing in one of Hanagan’s one act plays.

This is an exciting beginning for what is guaranteed to be a major career in drama. Dayton will always be home, states Annie, but she is grateful for this opportunity and experience.

Musical theatre Master Class Sept. 20

Ever want a chance to speak with a famous Broadway composer?  How about a chance to have him evaluate your singing?

That opportunity is coming to Dayton Sept. 20, thanks to The Human Race Theatre and Stephen Schwartz.

Schwartz, the composer of such noted shows as Wicked, Godspell, Pippin, and Children of Eden, is coming to Dayton for the opening of his brand new musical, Snapshots, which will be presented by The Human Race at The Loft Theatre in downtown Dayton from Sept. 20 to Oct. 7. Schwartz has offered to conduct a musical theatre Master Class on Sept. 20.

The Master Class, to be held in The Loft Theatre at 126 North Main from 3 to 5:30 p.m., will give all participants a chance to ask questions and speak with Schwartz, who, in addition to his Broadway musicals, has won three Oscars for his film music. In addition, names of those who would like to sing for Schwartz will be put in a hat, and those whose names are pulled will get to perform.

Thanks to support from the Producers’ Circle, this Master Class has only a $20 registration fee. Those interested should call Human Race Theatre Executive Director Kevin Moore at 461-3823, ext. 3115.

Vanguard Concerts 46th season opens Sept. 28

Vanguard Concerts opens its 46th season with a performance by violinist Timothy Fain on Friday, Sept. 28 at 8 p.m. in The Dayton Art Institute’s NCR Renaissance Auditorium.

A native of Santa Monica, Fain is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, studying with Victor Danchenko, and the Juilliard School, where he worked with Robert Mann.  
He currently resides in New York City.  Fain’s family has deep Dayton roots.
His program in Dayton will be: Sonata in G major, K.379 WA Mozart, Sonata No. 3, S.62 (K.2C6) Charles Ives, “A Stream Than All More Strong” Patrick Zimmerli (written for Timothy Fain), “Fantasy” Scherzo No. 4 in E major op. 54 Franz Schubert

Tickets are available at Hauer Music Company, Wright State University Center Box Office, and at The Dayton Art Institute on the night of the concert only. Tickets may also be ordered online at www.daytonartinstitute.org. For more information, please call Vanguard Concerts at (937) 512-0144 or (937) 298-6622.

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September 11, 2007
Volume 16, No. 37

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Pick up the August 28 print version of The Oakwood Register for your free guide to upcoming art and cultural events!

This is a special pull-out section inside the August 28 issue of
The Oakwood Register newspaper and is distributed
to all residents of Oakwood and available
at many of your favorite local retail shops, banks, restaurants,
waiting rooms, libraries, etc...

SEPT. 14 • 5-10 p.m.
free event
downtown dayton

Woodstock
7pm
Sunday Sept. 16