MOONLIGHT & MAGNOLIAS run dates: 4/3/2008 - 4/13/2008 Richmond Hill Barn Theatre, Geneseo ____________________________________________________________________________
MOONLIGHT & MAGNOLIAS takes its title from a phrase used twice in the script, referring to the setting for at least part of Margaret Mitchell’s "Gone With the Wind." Not necessarily meant as a compliment, it is a poke at the romanticization of the pre-Civil War South, and implies the haze of soft lighting and floral scents.
The setting for the play it names, however, is very different. MOONLIGHT & MAGNOLIAS takes place in the office of David O. Selznick, who has begun his work as producer of the film version of Mitchell’s bestseller. Selznick (played with impassioned panache by Jason Platt) has locked screenplay "fixer" Ben Hecht and director Victor Fleming in his office suite until they can hammer out a new screenplay for "Gone With the Wind" – which shut down after three weeks of filming because Selznick wasn’t happy with the screenplay he had. After a couple of days of crazed round-the-clock work and nothing to eat but bananas and peanuts, the place has been totally trashed; and a little soft light and fresh flowers would be a vast improvement.
Luckily for us, Platt and his costars can work just fine in the middle of all the mess. (And, as the storyline goes, luckily for the eventual audiences of the film, so can the characters they play.) Platt is joined by Don Faust, who plays Hecht, and Chris White, as Fleming – and occasionally by Ryan Mosher-Ohr, who plays Selznick’s secretary, Miss Poppenghul – and this team of performers turn out a first-rate show.
It’s not quite the laugh-aloud comedy I was expecting, but this material is deeply, and more subtly, funny than I would have even thought possible. MOONLIGHT & MAGNOLIAS is something of a tribute to the movies in general, and to "Gone With the Wind" in particular – and folks most familiar with the film (or at least the novel) are most likely to enjoy this work. This is a script crammed with gems for character actors, too, and anyone who enjoys seeing very good performances of great roles will love this play, too.
Platt is an energetic performer who dominates many scenes with his outsized character, but it is Platt’s absolute believability in the role that is most impressive. His fervor becomes Selznick’s, and the result is an amazingly authentic portrayal. I especially enjoyed his observations about the film industry’s past and present. Platt lets us see the character’s desperation, and his ability to let us clearly see Selznick channel a variety of characters from the novel is sheer genius and uproariously funny (but I won’t spoil your fun by telling you who all he provides line readings for!). This is top-of-the-line work by a fabulous actor.
Faust holds his own as the screenplay doctor, giving poor Hecht a theatrical whine that is really funny, yet imbuing the character’s political stances with real feeling. (My favorite whimper of Faust’s Hecht relates to body functions, so I won’t spoil that laugh either.) Suffice it to say that this role offers plenty of laughs as well.
White plays the cardboard posturing of Fleming with just the right touch of cartoon-influenced swagger, and he get some big laughs for this, but it is the facial expressions and physical antics of an exhausted, punch-drunk Fleming that are the biggest crowd-pleasers here. Favorites include his eventual discovery of the very last banana, plus a handful of characters from "Gone With the Wind," but White is also believable as the successful director who has vowed to never be a chauffeur again.
Mosher-Ohr is also funny, giving new meaning to the term "put-upon," but it is the sum total of these performances that make this such a great show. Very funny and sometimes moving as well, this is a work that director (and tech director and set designer) Jennifer Kingry can be deservedly proud of.
A creative (and doubtless embellished) look at actual events that transpired as part of the making of a film classic, MOONLIGHT & MAGNOLIAS is entertaining in its own right. Don’t miss the chance to see this excellent show.
