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Blood Brothers by Grossmont College Ah, the tangled web we weave. How did they ever think they would get away with it? On the other hand, it all seemed so perfect, fate must have planned it this way from the very beginning. Cruel fate. Barely able to make ends meet as it is, single mom and housekeeper Mrs. Johnstone is about five months away from having two more mouths to feed. Her employer, the wealthy Mrs. Lyons, has tried for years in vain to have a child. With Mr. Lyons away on business for the next several months, why not fake a pregnancy and then take one of Mrs. Johnstone's twins? It's extremely risky, but Mrs. Lyons is desperate for a child, and Mrs. Johnstone can't afford to feed two more children on top of all the ones she already has. They agree. The deal is made, and there can be no backing out. Just to make sure Mrs. Johnstone doesn't back out, Mrs. Lyons warns the superstitious woman that if twins who are separated at birth ever discover that they are twins, on that same day they both will die. A twisted sequel to Disney's The Parent Trap? Not exactly. Willy Russell's play attempts to show how class struggle can eventually tear two lifelong friends apart. The two become boyhood friends after an accidental meeting, but the relationship eventually begins to sour after rich brother Eddie goes off to college while poor brother Mickey gets laid off and ends up doing time in jail. Jealousy over a love triangle and Eddie's economic advantages push Mickey to the breaking point. And when he finds out that he could have been the one with all the breaks had he been given to the rich Mrs. Lyons instead of Eddie, Mickey goes over the edge. The play builds the story well, but then flounders in the closing scenes. The final moments seem terribly contrived, with the various characters making peculiar decisions without any motivation built into the plot to justify the rapid changes. Because of that the characters lost some of their reality, consequently making me think of them not as real people but as merely characters in a plot that were being manipulated by a writer who knew how he wanted the story to end, but didn't know how to get it there -- in the process definitely lessening the impact of the closing scene. Nevertheless, most of the play is a highly enjoyable musical drama, and Director Neil Rothschild brought together an impressive array of talent to perform it filled with fantastic singers. The central character is Mrs. Johnstone, mother of the twins. Cathie Hyatt comes on especially strong in the second act both in her comedy (her Act Two reprise of Marilyn Monroe) and dramatically near the end. She is held back a little by her extremely soft and gentle voice, making it difficult for her to truly come across as angry or stern when the scenes call for it. Both brothers Mickey (Justin W. Martin) and Eddie (Justin Parks) turn in commendable performances as young boys with their awkward, innocent, and uninhibited manner. Carla Israel likewise does a tremendous job as both their childhood playmate who, as is usually the case, matures a little more quickly than her male counterparts, and also later as their adult girlfriend who is torn between the two. At the root of all this eventual strife is Carly W. Nykanen as Mrs. Lyons who made the fatal mistake of putting new shoes on the table (a superstition I was not previously aware of, but one that I will from now on consciously avoid). Carly's intimidation of Mrs. Johnstone and her later despairing attempts to gain her "son's" love were superb. And finally Paul Morgavo turns in a strong appearance as the judgmental narrator straight out of Evita whose ominous warnings we hear throughout the show. Strangely he keeps foretelling the price Mrs. Johnstone and Mrs. Lyons will have to pay for their terrible deed, but I would suspect the blood brothers might feel they paid a far higher price for the sins of their mothers than did their mothers. Rob Hopper San Diego Playbill ~ Cast ~
Mrs. Johnstone: Cathie Hyatt Narrator: Paul Morgavo Mickey: Justin W. Martin Eddie: Justin Parks Sammy: Paul Warren Linda: Carla Israel Mrs. Lyons: Carly W. Nykanen Mr. Lyons: Michael Smith Policeman/Teacher: Timothy Ly Ensemble: Morgan Donlon Jason Godfrey Stephanie Jones Phuoc Le Timothy Ly Nicole Rodriguez James Schloegel Kristen Taylor Director: Neil Rothschild Musical Director: Cris O'Bryon Set Design: Linda Gilbreath Costume Design: Beth Mallette-Anderson Sound Design: Craig Everett Choreographer: Judy Quiett Scenic Painter: David Mooney Lighting Design: Mike Durst Stage Manager: Nathan Suter |