By Chuck Graham, TucsonStage.com
Even heartbreak needs to have a sense of humor.
Where would soldiers in battle be without foxhole humor?
Where would mourning relatives of the dead be without graveside humor?
Why should heartbreak be any different? The question gets some serious consideration in John Cariani’s whimsical play “Almost, Maine” which is receiving an excellent presentation downtown at Beowulf Alley Theatre.
Maria Caprile as director gives her cast of four men and four women a loving push to play 20 characters in 10 vignettes that inspire such adjectives as “wistful, ironic, amusing, warm, sweet-natured and sometimes melancholy.”
That list was compiled by the reviewer of a Texas production, but it fits perfectly here, as well. Hitting just the right touch combining the real and surreal are Patrick Baum, Candace Bean, Jacob Brown, Lily Delamere, Seth Fowler, Leslie Miller, Jared Stokes and China Young.
While each of the vignettes is little more than a sketch, deeper truths are always suggested, even when…for example… one young woman carries around in a little paper bag all the pieces of her broken heart.
Keeping within the unspoken laws of its own fanciful landscape, conversation leads her to getting involved with a man who has the very skills to repair that little paper bag’s contents.
Don’t worry, if you didn’t enjoy that one, there are nine others reminding us that life really does depend on random acts of kindness -- as well as random acts of randomness (which can give one’s preconceptions a healthy shaking of the shoulders).
The eccentricity of all the characters, as well as their clunky parkas, boots and survivalist hats, always adds to the humor. That title refers to the isolated northern Maine village named Almost. No doubt one of its founding pioneers must have said “Well, it’s almost a town.”
The eerie Northern Lights are a normal part of the night sky, as well. Only the most unconnected of personalities would choose to live in such an isolated place. Instead of trying to convince us, Cariani keeps serving up one example after another of how that happened.
It is impossible not to be charmed.
“Almost, Maine” continues through April 14 in performances at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays, at Beowulf Alley Theatre, 11 S. Sixth Ave. Ticket are $20 general admission, with discounts for seniors, military, educators and students. For details and reservations, 520-882-0555, or visit www.beowulfalley.org
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