[Capdist-announce] THE REVIEWS ARE IN: Don't miss final week AN INSPECTOR CALLS

[John William Hickman]

 *The reviews are in. Final Week . . . *
Civic Players' An Inspector Calls is a work of art

*Amy Durant THE ALT*
*Amy Durant <http://thealt.com/author/amy-durant/>* | *Monday, January 29
2018*

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[image: Schenectady Civic Players’ An Inspector Calls is a work of art]

For those who work in theater, one of the hardest decisions is play
selection. Theaters love to do new work, but many theatergoers are more apt
to attend a show with name recognition – either a show or a playwright they
know. Theaters need audiences, but get tired of doing the same types of
shows.

But what if you could take one of these older works and completely
transform it? Get the audience in the door on name recognition, then give
them the show they were planning to see in a way they’ve never seen it (or
even thought of it) before – but without changing the script (which is a
copyright issue, of course?) You’ve got a happy audience, a happy theater
company, and you’re not just putting on a show. You’re making art.

Director Patrick White has created a work of art with his production of *An
Inspector Calls* at Schenectady Civic Players.

Framed as a theater group putting on a show on an empty stage in 1945, an
inspector (Angelique Powell) shows up at Mr. and Mrs. Birling’s (Emmett
Ferris, Kim Wafer) home on the day they’re celebrating their daughter
Sheila’s (Josie Smith) engagement to Gerald (JR Richards.) The inspector
tells them a young woman (Carmen Lookshire) committed suicide, then through
a pointed interrogation, makes them realize they each had a connection with
her – and that they may be responsible for her death.

The empty stage, first, is a stroke of genius. This is a drawing room
mystery, right? Wrong. The show could be anywhere, at any time. There are
very few props or set pieces; the actors – and the utterly lush and
gorgeous period costumes by Beth Ruman – are the centerpiece here, with no
distractions. White’s stage pictures, as always, are perfection – I’m
always a fan, but I think this is the first time they’ve taken my breath
away. Additionally, the flashback scenes are pure poetry.

White has put together a strong cast for the piece, bringing together both
new and familiar actors to the SCP stage in nontraditional casting. Powell,
whose strength on stage is rivaled by few in the area, is inspired as the
inspector; her fire and passion to bring justice to the young victim seem
as innate to her as breathing. Wafer is chillingly cold and calculating as
the matriarch of the family; Marquis Heath, whose performances always bring
me joy, is perfect as the disaffected Birling son. Lookshire, whose role is
largely in flashbacks (and three beautiful songs – what a voice!) stole the
show without a single word of her own, haunting the shadows in her icy blue
dress, reminding the family of their misdeeds.

The question of how to keep theater fresh in a world of diminishing
audiences is a constant one. Go watch this show for the answer. This is how
to put on a performance that everyone will want to see and everyone will be
enriched having seen, where the line between new and old play is so blurred
it might as well not be there.

“An Inspector Calls,” *Schenectady Civic Players
<https://www.civicplayers.org/an-inspector-calls>, 12 South Church Street,
Schenectady; through February 4; $20; Run time: 2 hours, 15 minutes with a
20-minute intermission; (518) 382-2081; *civicplayers.org

<https://civicplayers.org/>

Final performances of* An Inspector Calls *are Wednesday through Sunday
(January 31 through February 4).  Wednesday and Thursday curtains are at
7:30 pm., Friday and Saturday curtains are at 8 pm., and Sundays are
matinees only at 2:30 pm.  <https://civicplayers.org/>
Tickets are $20.  Order on-line at <https://civicplayers.org/>
www.civicplayers.org   Or call (518) 382-2081


<https://civicplayers.org/>
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