Stage Right

By Erik Maulbetsch, The Yellow Scene
December 1, 2004

Any play that features only two characters and only one set is bound to be a community theater standard. Add both Tony and Pulitzer awards, and it’s not hard to see why The Gin Game is a favorite. D.L. Coburn’s 1977 Broadway classic will make its way to Lafayette in January. The intimate Mary Miller Theater (300 E. Simpson St.) should be an excellent host for this up-close-and-personal production, as it holds only 80 people at capacity.

Timothy Englert and Ellen Ranson play two elderly retirees, Weller Martin and Fonsia Dorsey, who spend their golden years tarnishing in a humble nursing home, complaining, insulting one another, waltzing to Leonard Cohen, and playing endless hands of gin rummy. The dialogue is not of the soft focus Hallmark variety—Weller’s language could wilt plants, and both characters’ line drip with venom and bitterness. An honest look at aging in modern America, The Gin Game elicits laughter, gasps and sniffles from its audience, as long as they are willing to listen.

The simple structure of the play might not suit the attention span of the raised-on-Bruckheimer generation, but those who pay attention will be rewarded. For those who scoff at the implication that paying close attention will be a challenge, Stage Right has an extra credit project for you: keep score. Just like baseball fanatics tracking balls and strikes at Coors Field, you can keep tabs on Weller and Fonsia using the Hollywood system (experienced rummy players know what we’re talking about). Mail or fax your score card to us (contact info on pg. 5), or email to theyellowscene.com, and we’ll send a few of the correct entries tickets to an upcoming play. The curtain goes up 7:30 Friday and Saturday evenings (2pm Sunday afternoons) from January 14-30. Call the Lafayette Community Players at 303.604.3841 to reserve tickets, or order online at www.lcptheater.org. If you miss it, the show will move to LoDo’s Repertory Theatre in February, check the website for details.