Dark
subject matter brilliantly illuminated.
by
Martin Millerchip. North Shore News, Friday September 17, 2004.
With
extremely limited time to 'fringe' this year, I can offer only
one recommendation as a 'don't miss'. But it's a great one - on
my Top 10 Fringe all-time list for sure and definitely deserving
of a remount.
How
I Learned to Drive.
Are
you ready for this ? Sit down please.
The
topic of the show I'm recommending is pedophilia. So far, almost
everyone I have said this to had reacted with revulsion, as if
the show itself is tainted by its subject matter.
Nevertheless,
I beg you all, give this one a chance. The writing is not exploitive,
there are no graphic descriptions and almost no physical interaction
so there is nothing to get disgusted about except the issue itself
-- and surely children at risk anywhere deserve the benefit of
light being shone into their darkness.
But
don't choose this production for its social conscience. Vogel
won the Pulitzer for her simple, spare script in 1997, and while
I'm no fan of cinematic manipulation of timelines, I was ultimately
willing to accept that Vogel's choice to add gradual detail to
her two principal characters is effective.
North
Van actress Eileen Barrett offers a compelling performance of
control because she finds the turmoil and terror of her character
before masking it. I wish she had worked harder at the physicality
of her character's different ages, but the emotional complexity
she finds is beyond compare.
Vogel's
writing hands Allan Morgan the somewhat easier chore of making
abuser Uncle Peck a complex and believable character, a task he
handles with his usual sensitivity.
Great
supporting cast, brilliant direction by James Fagan Tait. Don't
miss this one!
