The Globe Dives Deeper with the Co-Adaptation Deceived
And obviously, my dear readers, I joke and say it lightly because marriage is as lovely as it is hard and, sometimes, maddening.
In The Old Globe’s latest production, Deceived, an adaptation of the 1938 play Gaslight by English playwright Patrick Hamilton, I found the British idiosyncrasies to be one of the highlights. It’s as if Bridgerton met Clue.
It is 1901, and newlyweds Bella (Brittany Bellizeare) and Jack (Travis Van Winkle) have moved to a centric house in London. Something not so pleasant happened at the house, and that led to the opportunity of moving into it, furnished as it was. Not only that, but Elizabeth (Maggie Carney), the chambermaid, came with the house. Jack goes to work every day and to the club, while Bella supervises the house and any pending payments. Objects start switching places or full-on disappearing, and Jack is concerned for Bella and her mental well-being. He employs Nancy (Kennedy Tolson) to help with the housework, but the girl has an attitude and an agenda of her own. Bella, although confused, believes something is not right with her nerves. She decides to act on them and not only confirms her state of health, but her husband’s intentions, as well as the rest of the house’s.
Caparelliotis Casting did a firm selection with this cast. Brittany Bellizeare is both ethereal and smart as Bella, adding a charming touch while guiding the audience through her discoveries. Travis Van Winkle is also lovely but vicious, as Jack, keeping that mysterious air in his actions. The second highlight within this production is that it is a thriller presented in the intimate White theatre, as actors move around during the action and dialogue, across a well-set directorial puzzle by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg, who paced the happenings with an organic flow along Paige Hathaway’s scenic design, who is debuting at the Globe with this piece and hit not only the marks, but the hidden clues as well. Shhhh…
I was sitting towards the back left of the theatre and I felt I perceived more backs than front performances, but I was still captured. There was an added value during the performance that I saw: As Bella is falling deeper into what is happening -no spoilers-… an audience member yelled “no, no, no!” which activated a loud cackle in unyson that for a brief moment, broke both the concentration and fourth wall with Van Winkle who made the effort to not join in the laughter. The scene was paused for a brief second so we could all compose ourselves and continue.
I always point out how happy it makes me when I see local actors in the bigger companies that mainly include actors from LA or New York in their productions. Maggie Carney is one of San Diego’s histrionic gems, and we have many. Good to see that she is at the Globe’s stage again after almost 13 years. Carney is enthralling as Elizabeth and shares a couple of moments with the audience. I also love debuts, and Kennedy Tolson is making her professional debut with this show, and a solid one it was. Tolson understood the character and articulated well both the naive ambition and young feistiness in Nancy. There is also a change of heart that I believe is part of this co-adaptation between Johnna Wright and Patty Jamieson, who took away the mansplaining from the original and highlighted the female roles while still giving the male one a meaty participation.
The third highlight was Fitz Patton’s sound design and beautiful original music, as it uplifted the piece and gave it feeling.
Bryan Ealey’s lighting prompted a couple of gasps and screams; Nicole Jescinth Smith’s costume design was sigh-worthy, meshing different fabrics and materials along with gorgeous colors, and Andrea Caban’s coaching rounded out the British flair with its variations.
The play is over two hours with a 15-minute intermission, but it goes by fast.
I went with my mother, and it was a great match since we enjoy solving mysteries. It is also a good date night.
Deceived is currently playing and has now been extended until September 14th.
Marie Jahelka is the Production Stage Manager for this production, and Kendra Stockton is the
Stage Management Swing.
The Globe uploaded the Insight Seminar with the show’s director, and you can watch it here.
