THE SPITFIRE GRILL - Actors Co-Op David Schall Theatre

"The Spitfire Grill" - A Beacon of Hope

"A Beacon of Hope." 

That's what all the publicity materials said. But when you are in a situation, a bind, a hopeless quagmire, the last thing you can see is a beacon. You cling to a phrase, a person or even a crazy idea to help you out of it.

            Enter one recently released felon, Percy Talbot, with a magazine clipping of the fall landscape of the little nowhere Wisconsin town of Gilead. Always be ware of names in stories for they almost always have meaning. Gilead was the Biblical rocky mount area east of the Jordan River that stood a place of witness for God. In fact, Jacob camped there and wrestled the angel not far from it.

            Of all the places our parolee could choose to live, she chose Gilead. And they were the better for it as it turned out. Hannah Howzdy portrayed the perfectly angry, wounded bird (as one character called her) of Percy who settled in a town that wasn't ready for her but sorely needed her.

Gilead was a seething sea of gossip and unsolved emotions and as everyone who met Percy found fault with her, she persisted and showed her true self, a giving, compassionate problem solver.

            Hannah, the crusty old timer who runs the dying greasy spoon of the Spitfire, objected to Hannah's presence yet she still allowed her to stay, to work and to live. The characters of our drama all pass through the Spitfire and thus all interact with the new girl. Almost all of them find fault but Shelby, played by Caitlin Gallogly, a perfect cockeyed optimist, was different. She found a way to bring Percy into the fold while dealing with her own dysfunction.

            And every life that Percy touches has dysfunction bubbling under the surface, waiting for the sunlight of disinfection that is a byproduct of Percy's friendship. But the former prisoner herself has been running from a secret of abuse all her life. In fact, it is the reason she served time and now she is ready for her sunlight as well. Howzdy has a wide singing range, as well as a beautiful voice that brought the oddly minor-chorded score to life. (Hint: many full-length YouTubes exist of prior stagings with different casts but the music is accessible.)

            We know the schmaltz is coming yet we crave it, nonetheless. That's the nature of schmaltz. It flavors the insipid. So, when the knot is untied and everyone's cards are revealed, we are happy for Percy for standing her ground.

          The cast is so well gelled in this production. They all fit into the puzzle of Gilead and its big reveal. Sheriff Joe Sutter was a stand-out, played with an attractive friendliness and an "Aw, Shucks" attitude by Gavin Michael Harris, even when he is doing his lawman routine. He exudes strength with a side of compassion. Spencer Rowe (Caleb) highlight for us was "Digging Stone," another minor-scaled reveal about the tough life in Gilead.

            The joy was the three "girls" enjoying the fruits of their labors with their scheme to sell the Grill. They sit around a table drinking applejack, the perfect mid-west Americana drink that had all three loosen their lips. Their three-part harmony was exquisite.

            A tip of the Cassone hat to the set designer, Tim Farmer, who did artistic wonders with the lights by Nick Foran. The way the lights changed the leaves into snow on the branches of trees was wonderful. And let us not forget the music. More and more these days, sound engineers deem it necessary to crank the volume. Before you know it, a beautiful gentle story is overwhelmed by decibels. Stephen Van Dorn saw to it that the orchestra/band supported the singers. It all worked at the Sunday Matinee.

            A final standing O to director Bonnie Hellman who, as we learned at the Talk Back, reached into her Actor's Co-op rolodex to find actors who could hit the notes written into the wide range of the score. That she did and in the final analysis, the "big scene" at the end (no spoiler here) brought tears to this emo's eyes. Thank you to all in the Co-op for a wonderfully warm, heart-breaking show. I missed the Grill as soon as I hit Gower. And I miss Gilead, the rocky witness town that time might have forgotten but Percy and the Co-op helped everyone remember.

            The Spitfire Grill plays Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm and Sunday matinees at 2:30pm; (and a Saturday, May 17 matinee at 3pm) until June 8 at Actors Co-op's David Schall Theatre, 1760 N. Gower St. in Hollywood; ample free parking in secure lot.

Tickets :  actorscoopboxoffice@gmail.com or call 323.462.8460 and we will get back to you in 24 - 48 hours.