Strong performances in fragile Menagerie
Laura (Anna Steuerman), usuallly a shy recluse, dances with her gentleman caller, Jim (Flynn Harne), in the Vagabond Players’ production of Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie.
Photo by Shealyn Jae Photography
On the surface, it would seem that Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie is out of step with our modern, take-charge, do-it-yourself times.
A young woman, suffering from a permanent limp, lives like a hot house plant in a self-made purgatory. Meanwhile, her mother sees men as walking financial plans. Isn’t that sexist?
Tom, the soon-to-be-prodigal son, seems like a stereotype of the slacker who, when he isn’t off playing his 1930s version of Xbox (going to the movies every night), is mansplaining to both audience and family alike, while the “gentleman caller” Jim is a prequel to The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit.
So why is a play that debuted 73 years ago being performed today by the Vagabond Players in downtown Baltimore (and being enthusiastically received, if the audience I witnessed is any indication)?
Because Williams’ work transcends time as a graceful, poignant tale of human needs denied — love, freedom, ambition, a parent’s hope for her children. These are as vital and important now as they were nearly three-quarters of a century ago.
Glass prisons
Every character in Williams’ tragedy is one who is trapped — by circumstance, by familial duty, by memory.
The beating heart of the play is the Wingfield family matriarch, Amanda, played with great aplomb by Lynda McClary, with whom this writer had the opportunity to work as an actor in 2012, when she directed The Iceman Cometh at Fells Point Corner Theater.
McClary proves herself an individual of many talents, whether on stage or in the director’s chair. She crafts a powerful portrait of a fallen Southern belle, a role a lesser actor could easily let slip into caricature.
The Glass Menagerie continues its run at the Vagabond Players, 806 S. Broadway in Fells Point, through Oct. 1. Tickets are $10 on Thursdays, $15 on Fridays, and $20 on Saturdays and Sundays. There is a weekend senior discount price of $17.
For more details and ticket information, visit www.vagabondplayers.org or call (410) 563-9135.
