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‘The Light in the Piazza’ at Fox provides welcome
touch of romance
By Dave Clooney
Special to America’s Seniors at
www.TodaysSeniorsNetwork.com
There’s something different now playing at The
Fabulous Fox, which is always an ideal venue for
huge, splendid productions—it’s a touch of real
intimacy in an old-fashioned love story and
musical…it’s ‘The Light in the Piazza’.
It was a cold winter’s opening night, but this show
warmed the hearts of a nearly packed house.
Significantly, this musical is also a story about
people whom you can believe in. Perhaps a part of
the reason, at least, is that the backdrop was a
simpler time—Italy in 1953—and relates to a real
love story, in every best sense.
There is also a love triangle, although not of the
type one might expect. This one involves a young
lady, Clara, played by a very talented understudy
(Leslie Henstock), her fiancé, played by David
Burkham, —and an over-protective Mother, played by
Christine Andreas, who just can’t let go of her
protective role, brought about by a childhood injury
resulting in brain damage to Clara (and, likely,
some prejudices about nationalities.)
There is a question as to whether all of Clara’s
decisions, which are made by her Mother, to this
point, really have had to be, since Ms. Andreas as
the Mother, has endowed Clara with a sense of
purpose and a high degree of capability.
All the major characters offer a tasteful,
well-performed presentation. The staging is
excellent, making one believe that they are actually
able to take a slow walk down the streets of Italy.
Even though the play is highly intimate and takes
place on the large Fox stage,
set designer Michael Yeargan , with the assistance
of wonderful lighting by Christopher Akerlind,
enable the audience to make a magical
transformation.
It
is understandable why ‘The Light in the Piazza’ has
been so well-received by audiences that have waited
for a long time for a return to romance.
