The Outgoing Tide
a world premiere play by Bruce Graham
Northlight Theatre, Skokie, IL
Thru June 26, 2011
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The Tony Awards will be presented this Sunday night. In order to be eligible for awards honoring the best of the 2010-11 season, theatrical productions must have opened on Broadway by April 28, 2011
Although I haven't seen any of the shows nominated for Best New Play--nor any productions on Broadway in the past year--I'm confident that had The Outgoing Tide opened about three weeks earlier than it did, with the exact same cast, in a Times Square theater rather than at The North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, it would have earned a Tony nomination. As undoubtedly would its star, John Mahoney, and likely his two co-stars, Rondi Reed and Thomas Cox. (Mahoney and Reed are already Tony winners).
I feel lucky that Northlight performs 5 minutes from my home, attracts world-class talent--and Chicago stalwarts--like Mahoney and Reed and offers "Day of Show" discount tickets for $20 when available (call 847-673-6300). For this play, about a man afflicted with Alzheimer's Disease facing both his future and his past, is well-worth the effort for anyone to get to; on a trip to New York or London, you'd be unlikely to see a new dramatic work that's any better.
There are some twists and surprises from the beginning of the narrative, so I'll share very little of the play's plot, but Mahoney delivers a masterful performance as Gunner, a retired businessman not willing to passively accept the ravages of senility. His relationship with his wife, Peg (Reed), is not a simple one; she is doting but often harsh, inherently sympathetic to his plight but at times exasperated to the point of cruelty.
To see these two veterans--plus the also very fine Cox--interact for 2 hours would be worth the ticket price in itself, but Graham's script is shrewd, poignant, thought-provoking and even quite humorous. Director BJ Jones does a great job of never letting it get too cloying, or even predictable, and even the stage set would suffice just fine in a small Broadway house.
Regular followers of Seth Saith may be ready to submit an entry to Ripley's Believe It or Not, for this is my third straight @@@@@ review. That's never happened before. But The Outgoing Tide is that good; if justice is to be served, it may yet earn a Tony nom--amidst a successful Broadway run.
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