Matt Torney, artistic director of Theatrical Outfit, first saw Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie” when he was a teenager growing up in Northern Ireland. His mother had taken on the character of Amanda Wingfield, and the play stuck with him. He credits this work and Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” for cultivating his love of American theater and eventually making him want to relocate to the States.
Torney is now directing a version of “The Glass Menagerie” that kicks off Theatrical Outfit’s 49th season. Running through Nov. 23 at the Balzer Theater at Herren’s, it’s a solid and affecting production.
“The Glass Menagerie” was Williams’ first play, debuting in 1944, and it packs the same punch today as when it was written. A memory play, it’s about the Wingfields of St. Louis, headed up by Amanda (Terry Burrell), who is trying to hold her family together. The father has left, and they are on their own, struggling to make ends meet. Both of Amanda’s children are in their early 20s. Her son, Tom (Stephen Ruffin), works at a shoe warehouse but wants to be a writer. He escapes to the movies after work every night, and Amanda cannot figure out why. She constantly needles him about it.
Credit: Photo by Casey Gardner Ford
Credit: Photo by Casey Gardner Ford
Daughter Laura (Devon Hales) has been left with a limp after an illness growing up and suffers from shyness and an inferiority complex. Laura spends much of her time taking care of her glass animal collection. Amanda wants to find a husband for her daughter and is always after Tom to bring home a potential suitor for his sister. One night he does — he invites Jim O’Connor, aka the Gentleman Caller (Matt Mercurio), for dinner, not telling his co-worker about his mother’s ulterior motives.
As a director here, Torney’s work is unrushed and natural, giving the actors plenty of room. Overall, the four-person cast makes for a tight ensemble.
Burrell has long been one of the city’s performing treasures, and her Amanda is mesmerizing. She can be flat out monstrous and biting at times, expecting more from her two children and never shy about telling them. Yet she deeply loves her family and wants the best for them. It’s a multilayered performance. When Jim comes to visit, not knowing Laura is expecting him, the night is almost as much about Amanda — who is dressed regally — as it is about a possible courtship. Relishing her past as a Southern belle and recounting all the callers she herself used to have, Amanda is a woman who romanticizes her past and the memories it has provided her.
Ruffin is memorable as well. The actor does a fine job conveying Tom and his inner turmoil — and his ultimate dilemma about whether to escape from home and leave Laura behind.
Credit: Photo by Casey Gardner Ford
Credit: Photo by Casey Gardner Ford
Mercurio has a difficult task in not making the Gentleman Caller feel like a cad. He is kind and gentle and genuine in reconnecting with Laura, whom he has met before, but also not in a place where he can entertain another love interest. Mercurio handles the challenge admirably.
Only Hales fails to impress. In spite of some strong moments, her Laura lacks the depth the character should have.
This is a simple but effective production, with scenic design by the ubiquitous team of Isabel and Moriah Curley-Clay, highlighted with Laura’s titular glass menagerie and a large, backward (and symbolic) “Paradise” sign behind the action.
Credit also goes to lighting designer Ben Rawson, who creates a lengthy and intimate candlelit scene between Laura and Jim.
“The Glass Menagerie” was a deeply personal work for Williams. The playwright modeled Tom after himself and Amanda after his own mother. Laura is based on his sister Rose, who was institutionalized, eventually having a lobotomy after being diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Torney started his job with Theatrical Outfit around the time of COVID-19. It took a while for audiences to return to theaters and, as the company’s new public face, he didn’t get to directly engage with audiences the way he probably wished. Yet he’s getting his due now, and it’s hard to ignore what he has brought to the company.
For the last three seasons, Theatrical Outfit has produced a balance of world premieres and new takes on classics, including terrific versions of Nia Vardalos’ “Tiny Beautiful Things,” Edward Albee’s “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” and Sean Daniels’ “The White Chip,” a co-production with Dad’s Garage. Last season’s “The Lehman Trilogy” and “Young John Lewis” were also well received and attended.
“The Glass Menagerie” continues that impressive run, bringing both poetry and emotional heft to Tennessee Williams’ beloved work. It’s definitely worth seeing.
THEATER REVIEW
“The Glass Menagerie”
Through Nov. 23. $59 and up (must be purchased in person at the box office). Theatrical Outfit, Balzer Theatre at Herren’s, 84 Luckie St. NW, Atlanta. theatricaloutfit.org.
Credit: ArtsATL
Credit: ArtsATL
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