week of  2/27/02
 
 
 

HART brings New York classic to the mountains
For 42 years, “The Fantasticks” was performed in New York City’s Sullivan Street Playhouse, a cozy space much like HART’s 75-seat studio.
By Michael Beadle
What: HART presents ‘The Fantasticks’
When: Shows will run March 1, 2, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, and 16 at 7:30 p.m. Sunday matinees — March 3, 10 and 17 — will be held at 3 p.m.
How much: $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and $6 for students.
Where: HART studio, Waynesville
More: 828.456.6322


A wall separates two families which live side by side. The daughter in one family is forbidden to see the boy next door because of an old rivalry between two neighboring fathers. Yet somehow, the children, Matt and Luisa, grow up with the urge to see each other. Against all odds, they fall in love and wind up together.

But this happily-ever-after tale unravels quickly when Matt and Luisa discover that their fathers secretly hatched the neighborly feud knowing that their children would grow up going against their paternal wishes. So the love story was all based on a lie. When the truth comes out, Matt and Luisa end up fighting. Matt runs away and Luisa has an affair with another man, while the two fathers proceed to build a wall back up between them. Will the families return to peace? Will Matt and Luisa reunite?

Haywood Arts Repertory Theatre presents “The Fantasticks” this weekend at the Performing Arts Center in Waynesville, and for a new twist on its first show of the season, it will open in the studio theatre rather than the main stage to honor the spirit of the longest running show in theatre history. For 42 years, “The Fantasticks” was performed in New York City’s Sullivan Street Playhouse, a cozy space much like HART’s 75-seat studio.

Partly a comedy of errors, partly vaudevillian, partly a poignant story of love and temptation, “The Fantasticks” has a magical, timeless quality to it that will surprise its audiences with unexpected emotions. Based on the play, “Les Romanesques” by “Cyrano De Bergerac” author Edmund Rostand, “The Fantasticks” was written by Tom Jones with music by Harvey Schmidt. Jones and Schmidt collaborated on the project as students at the University of Texas. The show first opened in 1960 and went on to play in more than 5,000 American cities and 50 foreign countries. The show closed temporarily in New York City after the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. Strangely enough, there’s a line in the end of the show which the narrator sings, “Deep in December, the heart must remember the fires of September that made us mellow.” When the show reopened in New York, the cast made its way to those haunting words and broke down crying in the middle of the song. The show was soon cancelled after that because the playhouse was sold to another owner who decided to turn the building into retail space.

But New York’s loss was Haywood County’s gain. HART held auditions for its own version of “The Fantasticks” on the same night as the last performance of the show at the Sullivan Street Playhouse, and to honor the memory of the play, HART will stage weekend performances in its studio theatre for as long as audiences would like to come — starting with a three-weekend run and later this summer if audiences would like to come see it. Shows will run March 1, 2, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, and 16 at 7:30 p.m. Sunday matinees — March 3, 10 and 17 — will be held at 3 p.m. Seating is limited, so reservations are strongly suggested. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and $6 for students. The HART box office is open from 1-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

This is definitely a show worth seeing, both for its strong cast and compelling story line. The plot centers around Matt, played by Forrest Livengood (audiences might remember him in the hilarious role as the French king in last year’s “Three Musketeers”), and Luisa, played by Shanda Jacobs (the lovely Philia in last year’s “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”). But there are great slapstick scenes with Henry, the old actor, (played by the ever zany Tom Dewees) and sidekick Mortimer (played by the lovable Jack Ross).

Equally entertaining are the two fathers, Bellomy (Charles Mills) and Huckabee (Bob Baldridge). As the eloquent romancer and narrator, El Gallo, played by Art O’Neil steals his share of scenes as well. Sherry Gaddis assists O’Neil in the duties of staging the various props that come and go in this circus-like show.

Music director Chuck Taft, who has worked magic in past HART productions, keeps a tight watch on the melodies and pacing of the show, instructing actors to hold a note just a tad longer here or to pick up the speed in a measure there. The singers will be aided by musical accompanist Nora Vetro as well as a harpist.

Some of the scenes turn out like circus acts — a ring here, a ring there — but everything is very unhidden, director Steve Lloyd explained. That way, the audience gets to see, quite symbolically, what lies behind the facade of these characters’ lives. If the first act builds a love story, the second act tears it down, and El Gallo plays with that idea we all seem to wonder about — do we create our own lives or are we controlled by fate only to play our parts as puppets. And if love comes too easily, there’s a price to pay for unearned love.

“It grabs you,” Lloyd said.

The show will open Friday, March 1. For more information, call the HART box office at 828.456.6322.