I saw STAND at the Purple Rose Theater in Chelsea Michigan in 2002. The play was written by Toni Press-Coffman and was a meaty play.(From a local newspaper review. I remember the performances better than the plot. It was excellent)
A sports radio talk-show host, Liz (Sandra Birch) finds herself negotiating with a kidnapper for the release of a little girl.
The radio host’s emotional response to the violence around her is balanced by the more contemplative reactions of her producer (Lynch Travis), a Vietnam Vet who tends to look at the big picture when discussing the kidnapping or his son’s recent experience with violence. But in the end Liz loses patience with patience itself.
The DJ, as embodied by Birch's dynamic performance, registers a purely emotional response to a world in which violence seems immutable and compassion seems irrelevant. However fruitless or inarticulate it is, when Liz finally raises her voice in a extended howl of protest, she’s showing us the only truly logical response to the horrors of the world. -
I have seen Sandra Birch in several plays and she is always a pleasure to watch. I am tempted to go see her in Imagining Madoff, playing here now. It is fun to follow local actors throughout their career. Luckily Detroit has a pretty vibrant theater scene that enables this.
2 comments:
Sounds interesting, though I don't know the play or the actress.
Jeff M.
She's a Detroit-area actress. I think the play has been performed elsewhere but I am betting not in NY. Regional theater has a life of its own.
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