SUCH a pretty day not to get out . I made a last
minute decision to attend a Sunday matinee of live theatre done by Terrific New Theatre, one of the little theatres here in Birmingham.
The Mystery of Love and Sex was the
offering. The online teaser stated:
“Deep in the American
South, Charlotte and Jonny have been best friends since they were nine. She's
Jewish, he's Christian, he's black, she's white. Their differences intensify
their connection until sexual desire complicates everything in surprising,
compulsive ways. An unexpected love story about where souls meet and the
consequences of growing up.”
This was my first time attending a TNT production.
In fact I went to the WRONG theatre
which was Birmingham Festival Theatre to which I have been too before. As a searched for a parking space, I wondered why I didn’t see anyone on the theatre grounds. Discovering my mistake Latoya (that’s my car’s name) and I did a
turn around hoping to make it to the
correct address Luckily TNT wasn’t too
far away.
I made it in well before the curtain went up.
According to the
Who’s Who on the program, the cast included:
Russell E.
Alexander II (Jonny) is a Senior
Theatre Arts Major at The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) who’ll be graduating this
April. He has performed numerous works
here and in other cities
Beth Kitchin (Lucinda) has performed in over 30 productions in the
Birmingham area. She is an Assistant
Professor of Nutrition Sciences at UAB.
*I immediately recognized her from her nutrition advisory
spots on the local morning show, Good Day Alabama
Judd McCluney (Howard) made his debut with TNT in 1987. He has performed in countless productions
here and elsewhere. He too studied at
UAB, been a member of the Birmingham Shakespeare Ensemble, City Equity
Theatre and Ravenswood Productions.
Laura Elson Towns (Charlotte) This was her fifth
performance with TNT. She has also performed with BFT and Virginia Samford
Theatre.
George “Buddy” Cannon (Howard’s father) is a retiree with a long history of
stage performances over the years. This was his first performance with TNT
This was definitely not a dramedy (comedy-drama)
for children. There were adult themes and scenes. Also present were infidelity, sexual tensions,
racism, homosexuality, alcohol, marijuana and tobacco.
I was gripped in a trance as each actor finessed
his/her character exhibiting a roller coaster of emotions of which I was a
passenger. A brilliant presentation.
I left the theatre sated from the performance.
|
Very cozy inside with head shots of various actors. |
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Photo opp with Russell E. Alexander II who portrayed Jonny. |
I would have requested photos from the other actors but he is the only one I saw.
That's it