Unflappable Elwood P. Dowd is content within himself and makes friends wherever he goes.
His secret?
Harvey, a six-foot, 1 1/2-inch rabbit who keeps him company … and is visible only to him. Everyone who knows Elwood knows Harvey is his pal. Elwood makes no bones about it.
The threat to this quirky but happy state of affairs?
Elwood’s social climbing sister, Veta, is maneuvering to have him and his delusion committed.
Why?
To Veta, Elwood and Harvey are an embarrassment.
In his “Director’s” intro, David Alan Morrison rightly dismisses the many ways he could have oriented audiences to this Pulitzer prize-winner in favor of a simple, “I hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed working on it.”
As scripted by Mary Chase and realized at the Wade James, “Harvey” makes comic sense out of everyday nonsense. It is fun to watch, fun to think about and, if you are not careful, fun to put your problems in perspective with.
In Scene 1, Act I, Keith Remon in the lead role of Elwood stands out as an odd duck, fish out of water, supercilious clown. By Scene 3, Act II, he is nobody’s fool, the ideal human being, the perfectly adjusted existential man. Remon is funny, sad, vulnerable and seriously likeable.
Dawn Cornell and Stephanie Spohrer as, respectfully, the wannabe socialite sister, Veta, and her raring to go, husband-hunting daughter, Myrtle, would be easy to hiss at if they weren’t such perfect caricatures. Attila the Hun and Little Miss Sunshine … what a combo.
This is sterling comedy with a solid supporting cast of 11 making much ado about something, pablum or food for thought. You decide.
Reactions? Comments? Email Dale Burrows at grayghost7@comcast.net or entertainment@weeklyherald.com.
‘Harvey’
WHEN: Through April 22 (April 15 sold out)
WHERE: Wade James Theatre, 950 Main St., Edmonds
TICKETS: $23 general, $20 senior, youth 18 and under and miltary; call 425-774-9600 or go to www.driftwoodplayers.com
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