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Orono Weekly Times, Wednesday. June 21, 2000 - 7 J Second time around, is twice too often The Port Hope Festival Theatre is presenting a new play, Second Time Around by Alissa Martin. Uwe Meyer directs this production. Second Time Around is essentially a British sex farce transplanted to small town Canada. As a new play, one might expect some minor inconsistencies inconsistencies or perhaps stretches of artistic license; however, there are several aspects to the plot that are unexpected. For example, one might ask what happened to the sensible, wise grandmother figure during the intermission. In the first half of the play, she is a convincing convincing support person for the troubled teenager and recently widowed man but in the second second half, she somehow transmogrifies transmogrifies to a gullible and foolish person able to be manipulated by the same troubled troubled teenager she was mentoring mentoring in the first act. The preceding comments are made in reference to the script itself...not the production. production. Indeed, the premiere production of this play is amusing. An experienced cast has been gathered and is fully able to work within the limits imposed on them by the script. Loma Wilson (Shirley, the above-mentioned grandmother) grandmother) is wonderful in the first half. She convincingly empathizes with the other characters and leaves us with the impression that Shirley would be anyone's favorite grandma. Her alter ego in the second half is also quite funny; however however the disparity is jolting. Charlene as played by Heather Hodgson is the quintessential quintessential vamp.. Hodgson plays a lovely vixen here and to a certain extent steals the show when she is onstage. • Sheri Beatty has the role of Samantha, a teenager coming to terms with her mother's death and moving from Toronto to a small town. Beatty's performance is sometimes inconsistent in her portrayal of a 17-year-old girl who lives life according to advice offered in Cosmo. This is due in part to the dialogue dialogue that is not necessarily that of a typical 17 year old; however, Beatty's inability to continually hold on to the 17 year old mindset is apparent. The only male role in this play is Brian Young's Ian. Young's seemingly intentional intentional portrayal of a wimp is well done. The question begs to be asked however...why are the women fighting over this guy? Alison Lawrence has the role of Katy who is Charlene's sister. Alison's performance is consistently excellent. She is, script considerations considerations aside, an engaging performer. She and Hodgson work well together and their joint scenes are very funny. From a technical perspective, perspective, the set lacks imagination and does not lend itself well to the story. There is a hodgepodge hodgepodge of styles and the furnishings furnishings seem to have .come from various eras. The only physical clue suggesting the time frame in which this story comes from is the use of a CD player. In some respects, entire cast has a problem age portrayal. portrayal. Wilson in no way has the physical appearance of a grandmother. Her onstage appearance does not indicate that she would be old enough to have a 40-year-old daughter. daughter. Similarly, the sisters played by Lawrence and Hodgson are not convincing 40 year olds. In fact, all three of the younger women have the appearance of late 20's/early 30's women. Only Young seems to be old enough to have a 17-year-old daughter and even this is a stretch. One might wonder what point is being made here. Many timely topics had a potential for being addressed in this play. Concepts like second families or the female perception of male sexuality are touched on, as are the relationships relationships between fathers and daughters; however, the opportunity to explore any of these issues is missed. Perhaps the story here is more a vehicle for male-bashing of which there is no shortage. Second Time Around runs until July 1 at the, Capitol Theatre, 20 Queen St. Port Hope. Tickets are $16.50 - $22.00. Information is available available at (905) 885-1071. IT PAYS TO ADVERTISE IN THE ORONO WEEKLY TIMES 983-5301 ~ Orono Country C#fe ^ Full Menu ïy 4 s kx ^ ' Main Street., Orono, Ontario • 983-9009 <S& II COME ONE! COME ALL! JULY 1st. 9 Join us in Orono for a walk in our :4 PARADE A noisy throng walking in celebration") BANDS - Governor General's Horse Guard Band &'Cavalry Unit; W.P. Cyclone's Magnificent High Wheel Band; Kendal Fyfe & Drum Band, Great Ganaraska Kazoo Band; Oshawa Legion Pipe Band; & Dodworth Sax-Horn Band 4 Gather for parade 10:15 am (purchase your kazoo) 4* PARADE leaves fairgrounds at 10:45 am 4* Picnic-in-the-Park at noon... pack a lunch or... 4* Food for Sale - M&M's and the Snack Bar 4" Prizes for - Best Victorian Hats (girls & women's); Best Victorian Waistcoats (boys & men's); Best Canada Day Hat (girls & women); Best Canada Day Waistcoat (boys & men); and Best decorated home in Orono Village (to be • judged prior to July 1st) 4 Kids Games by Koren's Creative Arts from 1-2 pm 4 Ball Games 4 Free Swimming 4 Face Painting - Big Sisters Organization 4 Elephant 4 Sonshine the Clown - Balloons 4 Sparky 4 Greetings from the Mayor and other dignitaries - 1 pm 4 COMMUNITY CAKE at 1:30 pm 4 Singers, Musicians, Jugglers... all talents welcome! #•*••••••