NEW YORK—Theater lovers were treated to a wonderful revival of the rarely performed and multilayered Tennessee Williams play “Vieux Carre,”(French Quarter of New Orleans) staged by the Pearl Theatre Company.
The story takes place at 722 Toulouse Street, a rundown boarding house in the French Quarter of New Orleans circa 1938. There a young writer (Sean McNall) becomes involved in the lives of the landlady, Mrs. Wire (Carol Schultz), and her various tenants. (Williams lived in New Orleans early in his career and was profoundly influenced by the local flavor and unique characteristics of its people.)
Mrs. Wire, a former beauty (to hear her tell it), now self-appointed guardian of morality, is slowly sliding into dementia. Her longtime maid, known as “Nursie” (Claudia Robinson), is also advanced in years.
Others in the house include Mary Maude (Beth Dixon) and Miss Carrie (Pamela Payton-Wright), two elderly ladies who are so poor they have to scrounge for food. Nightingale (George Morfogen) is an aging man who makes sketches for tourists and who has a suspicious and lingering cough.
Also living at the boarding house is Jane (Rachel Botchan), a girl of obvious good breeding from New Rochelle, New York, who arrived in New Orleans under rather mysterious circumstances. Currently, Jane is in the midst of a heated relationship with Tye (Joseph Collins), a barker at a local strip show.
More than a group of lovable losers, these are people that, due to circumstances beyond their control (issues of birth, illness, time), have found themselves at 722 Toulouse Street with nowhere else to go. But what makes these folks stand out is their quiet dignity. These are people who cover their pain and loneliness with smooth small talk. They make the best of whatever harsh hand fate has dealt them.
Nursie is an excellent example. She tells Mrs. Wire, in a matter-of-fact way, that she has reached retirement age and is more than willing to live on the streets. It will allow her a respite from the endless rounds of chores at the boarding house, and from going up and down stairs all day.
The writer not only acts as a stand-in for Williams, but also for the audience, letting them see snapshots of the characters and their situations.
The richness of the script, strong direction by Austin Pendleton (which includes staging several sequences in the aisles of the theater), and excellent performances by the entire cast, all combine to give the play a wonderful sense of atmosphere. One really feels they’re in New Orleans on a hot and still night, where people walk around outside at all hours, and where so many facets of life meet, mingle, and collide.
Just as important as the major confrontations are the little moments in the script, such as Nightingale asking the writer to light a candle; Jane desperately wanting to play a game of chess; and what happens when one decides to make gumbo in the middle of the night.
Schultz does a masterful job as Mrs. Wire, running the household with a somewhat slippery iron hand. Prone to sleeping on a cot near the front door (to catch people coming in late), she can be both cruel and petty, yet at the same time, compassionate and generous.
Morfogen is simply wonderful as Nightingale, completely embodying the persona of an aging and ailing artist. Not only does he get the best laugh lines in the play, but even in the most dire circumstances, he never once loses his pride.
Elsewhere, Robinson does a nice turn as Nursie, and Payton-Wright and Dixon do quite well in their small, but very important roles.
Fascinating to watch is the volatile, sexually-charged, and almost symbiotic relationship between Jane and Tye (poignantly performed by Botchan and Collins). There is no doubt the two care for each other, yet while they’re drawn together by their passions, they are forever kept apart due to their cultural and class differences. Jane likes to have an aura of civility around her. However Tye, who has no more than a fourth grade education, simply cannot rise to Jane’s level of hopeful expectations. Tye knows the streets, knows what must be done to survive, and is prone to jealously and drink. Yet he loves her in his own way, and hopefully will be there when she needs him the most.
McNall works well as the writer/narrator of the piece. Dispassionate at first and not wanting to get involved, he is all too soon pulled into this strange world of lost souls and shades in waiting and, like the writer, the audience cannot help but be touched by what they see, hear, and experience.
Just as important as the acting and direction is the set design by Harry Feiner, and the excellent work by lighting designer Stephen Petrilli and sound designer Jane Shaw.
The show had a very brief run in 1973. Hopefully, this revival will change all that, as “Vieux Carre” is a play that definitely deserves to be seen.
Also in the cast are Jeff Worden and Christian Pedersen.
Vieux Carre
Pearl Theatre Company
80 St. Mark’s Place
Tickets: 212-598-9802 or www.pearltheatre.org
Running Time: 2 hours, 35 minutes
Closes: June 14
Judd Hollander is the New York correspondent for the London publication The Stage.
