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CLEAR Temp: 50 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Thursday, November 21, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend September 25, 2002 Review Play’s beauty sprouts in an odd place By CATHY NOAH Mail Tribune At first blush, "Beautiful Thing" isn’t so beautiful. Playwright Jonathan Harvey has set two adolescent boys in a South London housing project with thin walls, abusive single parents and little hope of breaking free to pursue better lives. But just as the fairest of flowers can grow in the most barren earth, love blossoms here. And in artattack theater ensemble’s production that opened Friday, the unfolding is a joy to behold. The play centers around Jamie, a decidedly unathletic 15-year-old with a bad case of self-doubt, a brassy mother who doesn’t exactly help and a clandestine crush on his teenage neighbor, Ste (short for Steven). His confidante is another neighbor, high school drop-out Leah, who hides behind biting sarcasm and her adoration for the great but late Mama Cass. Stepping into this staging ground for scrapping misfits is the mother’s latest boyfriend, Tony, a freeloader who nonetheless serves his purpose as referee when tempers flare. They flare a lot. Mother and son, mother and boyfriend, mother and Leah, Leah and Jamie, Leah and Ste, Ste and Jamie. Living on the edge brings out everything in people, the worst and the best. And this is where Ellen Waters, as Sandra, Jamie’s mother, shines brightest in a talented cast. She’s rude. She’s mean. She’s so crass she could make a sewer rat blush. But somehow, thanks to Waters’ complex portrayal of a fiercely independent woman who retains a core of vulnerability, we still like her. Even as she swaggers about on stage, spouting wisdom gleaned from talk TV, Waters allows Sandra’s tender inside to show through. We know she loves her son unequivocally, more than she’ll ever love any man,even if sometimes she doesn’t know how to properly show it. Waters’ ability to balance her frustration with Jamie and her love for him allows us to view the happy ending not as a glib solution but as something that feels just right. Josh McIntyre plays Jamie with beautiful honesty, from his seesaw anger/love toward his mother to his coy flirtations with Ste, right up to his blushing cheeks. With his mother, he is defiant, a man in the making. With Ste, he’s a little kid again. Love does that. Duncan Hightower takes a few scenes before he finds his stride as Ste, but his fear — that his father will kill him because he’s gay — is heartbreaking. Hightower is endearing with Jamie, especially when he presents his new love with a gift. Elisabeth Cara as Leah and Frederick Lewis as Tony provide strong supportive roles. When Leah believes she’s Mama Cass during an acid trip, she’s got the perfect chance to ham it up — why not take advantage of it? This is a play about gay love, but it is so much more than that. It’s about discovering yourself, then accepting the consequences. It’s about making connections, even if they’re as simple as sharing a rainbow or splitting a joint. It’s about trusting others enough to let them accept you as you are. Thanks to her intelligent casting and sense of emotional timing, director Nicole Isaacson-Hillhas produced a great night of entertainment. With a strong cast surrounded by the upbeat music of Mama Cass, it doesn’t get much better than this. "Beautiful Thing" continues at 8:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2:30 p.m. Sundays through Oct. 6 at the Green Room, 280 E. Hersey St., Ashland. Tickets are $15 at the door, $13 in advance at Ashland Camera or on the Web at www.artattacktheater.com . Reach team leader Cathy Noah at 776-4473, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S