My Sky-High Expectations for The Velocity
of Autumn Were Met and Exceeded

"Ripple in still water...." Long before the house lights were dimmed, I was convinced that RedBird Theatre Company's production of Eric Coble's The Velocity of Autumn was going to be a prize winner. With Adam Traylor directing David Berberian and Lenore Field, with a production team that includes JJ Bauer, Derrick Ivey, and Nickolas Bria, I was optimistic; but it was one of the preshow songs that iced the cake.

As I headed to my seat, I found myself humming along to "Ripple," a tune by the Grateful Dead, which I had enjoyed some 55+ years ago. Hearing Jerry Garcia's voice, accompanied by David Grisman's mandolin on the chorus -- "Ripple in still water / When there is no pebble tossed / Nor wind to blow" -- reminded me of my teenage revelation that our actions (or inactions) can create metaphorical ripples in the "still waters" of the lives of everyone around us.

The Velocity of Autumn is a play that examines the "ripples" that family members create in each other's lives. The choice to include "Ripple" in the preshow music shows a high level of inspiration and acute attention to detail.

Let the record state that my sky-high expectations were met and exceeded.

The Play:

Alexandra is 80 years old, and her two older children have decided that she needs to be moved from her brownstone home in Brooklyn to a nursing home. She does not agree. She has barricaded herself in her home, armed herself with a few dozen Molotov cocktails, and made it clear that she will not hesitate to blow the place up.

Chris, her youngest child, has been out of touch with the family for 20 years. He has been summoned by his siblings. He climbs a tree and enters the brownstone through an upstairs window. He has been given one hour to reason with Alexandra.

What ensues is an approach/avoid duel between mother and son, which on the surface is about Alexandra's future but includes discussions of the dynamics and disappointments of the family's past. The subject matter is deep (and the stakes are high), but the interactions are so liberally laced with humor, sarcasm, and wit that audience laughter is frequently invoked.

Can Alexandra and Chris find common ground? Will their differences and/or similarities make compromise impossible?

The Velocity of Autumn, stars Lenore Field as Alexandra and David Berberian as Chris (photo by Alex Maness Photography)

The Acting:

One word could easily sum up Field's Alexandra and Berberian's Chris: REAL.

They have created characters that are so dramatically true to life that it is impossible to avoid feeling like flies on the wall of an actual domestic situation. The raw, surface emotions are there; and so are the underlying affections, the hopes, the disillusions, the resentments.

Most important, however, is that Field's and Berberian's performances are a perfect match for each other.

The Tech:

The program lists Derrick Ivey as scenic designer and Nickolas Bria as scenic fabricator/logistics specialist. The two have teamed up to create a room with all the ambiance and enough detail for this room in Alexandra's home.

As stage manager and dramaturg, JJ Bauer gets the job done.

The designers of sound, lighting, and costumes are uncredited; but their efforts should be commended nonetheless.

Nice Touches:

• The stadium-style staging that puts the action right in the lap of every audience member and creates a "playing field" on which each character can claim a "side."
• Placing the phone on Chris' end of the room, thereby making it a "given" that he would always be the one to answer it (even though it's his mother's phone).
• Chris's sweater. He nervously fidgets with it, and its condition makes it obvious that this fidgeting is a habit.
• The record player tucked away in a corner of the room.
• The Navajo-sounding music playing behind Chris' story about his experience on the reservation.
• The plethora of Molotov cocktails and the decision to have Alexandra enter carrying one.

Eric Coble's The Velocity of Autumn, directed by Adam Traylor, stars Lenore Field as Alexandra (photo by Alex Maness Photography)

Memorable Lines:

• "So, it's the real estate you're worried about."
• "His kids are nice. They don't threaten to jail anyone."
• "Getting you out of diapers was like the Bataan Death March."
• "A Doris Day and Rock Hudson movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock."
• "You left us. You kept leaving. It's the only thing you're good at."
• "'Plan' is way too organized for what's going on inside my head."
• "I think you understand the hunger to be free."
• "The more they tried to help me, the older I became."
• "... less and less me."
• "A tree knows how to mind its own business."
• "The only thing you have to offer is to get out of the way."
• "The hardest thing about raising you kids was that you were there."
• "We had the hunger for art."

From the Department of Picky-Picky:

Alexandra picks up her cane at one point. I found myself wondering why she doesn't use it when she eventually embarks on what might be a long walk.

The Bottom Line:

The script of Eric Coble's The Velocity of Autumn presents multiple sides of some very important issues, incorporating both gentle humor and biting satire. RedBird Theatre Company's production, directed by Adam Traylor, enhances everything with honest performances and sound tech.

If a work that is not only intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually stimulating but also comically entertaining and down-to-earth human is your cup of tea, you will be fascinated by this show.

Side Note: You don't have to be steeped in the lyrics of Robert Hunter's "Ripple" to appreciate the play, but you might want to read through them once before attending the play and again afterwards:

If my words did glow with the gold of sunshine
And my tunes were played on the harp unstrung
Would you hear my voice come through the music?
Would you hold it near as it were your own?

It's a hand-me-down, the thoughts are broken
Perhaps they're better left unsung
I don't know, don't really care
Let there be songs to fill the air

Ripple in still water
When there is no pebble tossed
Nor wind to blow

Reach out your hand, if your cup be empty
If your cup is full, may it be again
Let it be known there is a fountain
That was not made by the hands of men

There is a road, no simple highway
Between the dawn and the dark of night
And if you go, no one may follow
That path is for your steps alone

Ripple in still water
When there is no pebble tossed
Nor wind to blow

You who choose to lead must follow
But if you fall you fall alone
If you should stand then who's to guide you?
If I knew the way I would take you home

Eric Coble's The Velocity of Autumn, directed by Adam Traylor, stars David Berberian as Chris (photo by Alex Maness Photography)

Eric Coble's THE VELOCITY OF AUTUMN (In Person at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 26th, and 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 27th), directed by Adam Traylor and starring David Berberian as Chris and Lenore Field as Alexandra (RedBird Theater Company at the Walltown Children's Theatre in Durham). REELS: https://www.facebook.com/RedBirdTheaterCo/reels/. PRESENTER: https://www.redbirdtheatercompany.com/, https://www.facebook.com/RedBirdTheaterCo/, https://linktr.ee/redbirdtheaternc, https://www.instagram.com/redbirdtheaternc/, and https://www.youtube.com/@RedBirdTheaterCompany. VENUE: https://www.walltownchildrenstheatre.org/, https://www.facebook.com/walltownchildrenstheatre, https://instagram.com/walltownchildrenstheatre, and https://www.youtube.com/@walltownchildrenstheatre447. DIRECTIONS: https://www.bing.com/maps/. THE VELOCITY OF AUTUMN (2011 Boise, ID, and 2014 Broadway dramatic comedy): https://www.concordtheatricals.com/p/98323/the-velocity-of-autumn, https://ericcoble.com/adult-plays/, and https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-show/the-velocity-of-autumn-495916. THE SCRIPT (excerpts): https://books.google.com/books. ERIC COBLE (Edinburgh, Scotland-born playwright and screenwriter): https://ericcoble.com/, https://www.concordtheatricals.com/a/1418/eric-coble, https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-cast-staff/eric-coble-495920, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0167906/, and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Coble. NOTE: RedBird Theater Company will also perform this show on Oct. 3rd and 4th at Elizabeth Street United Methodist Church in Durham. The Oct. 3rd and 4th performances are SOLD OUT. TICKETS: $17.82-$43.82, plus taxes. Click here to buy tickets. INFORMATION: contact@redbirdtheatercompany.com. PLEASE DONATE TO: RedBird Theater Company and Walltown Children's Theatre. Quinn Barbaza's Triangle Review Review Permalink. Cyndi Whisnant's Triangle Review Review Permalink.

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