REVIEW: ‘The Savannah Disputation’ plays to huge laughs

BY STUART DUNCAN

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

N.J. THEATER REVIEW

When "The Savannah Disputation" opened in New York, and later in Washington, critics agreed that perhaps the title was hardly a box office thriller, but disagreed on the worth of the play itself. Some compared it to TV sitcoms — one drew a parallel with "The Golden Girls;" another referred it to Carol Burnett and Vicki Lawrence on religious steroids.

The current production at Hopewell's Off-Broadstreet Theatre shows that the work is far more than mere sitcom. True, the principal characters are a pair of spinster old ladies, and true, the conversation quickly turns to religion, mainly because very quickly a young evangelist with brochures turns up at the front door.

And certainly true, the laughs come easily and frequently. There are far deeper threads here than television has ever presented.

And the reason is that director Bob Thick has not only cast brilliantly, but kept a tight rein on his quartet of performers. This clearly is a show that can spin out of control — either towards the too erudite or towards silliness. But happily director Thick and his cast never slip off that fine line. Religion is batted cleverly around the living-room that forms the setting for the evening, sometimes to huge laughs. (Tom Stevenson, as the local Catholic curate, tells a Catholic joke that may very well be the funniest you have ever heard.) But there are serious points made as well and although the play is a short 90-minutes, much ground is covered.

Virginia Barrie plays the older, more defiant sister, Mary and has a delicious time parrying and thrusting, then pouting when nicked. Catherine Rowe plays the more pliant sister, Margaret with a deft touch Katie Munley obviously has a good time as the evangelist, Melissa, happily passing out literature which she may (or may not) have read. And the aforementioned Tom Stevenson nicely hides his educated and firmly settled argument until needed.

The play premiered in Illinois, in 2007 — then to Playwrights Horizon in 2009. Since then it has played from San Diego to Boston and Washington. This is the New Jersey debut.

"The Savannah Disputation" continues at Hopewell's Off-Broadstreet Theatre through March 12th. Fridays and Saturday evenings at 8 p.m.; Sundays at 2:30 p.m.; the doors always opens one hour earlier for desserts and beverages (609) 466-2766.