Audience members’ heartbeats synchronize while experiencing live performance, studies have shown, and during Farmers Alley Theatre’s production of “Misery”, the embodied suspense is palpable—shoulder to shoulder in the intimate space of their black box theatre, you can feel everyone’s heartbeat speed up, along with your own, at high valence moments.
For anyone who’s familiar with the celebrated Stephen King tale, first as the 1987 novel, then as the 1990 Rob Reiner film that won Kathy Bates an Academy Award, then several play adaptations, the horror is unforgettable.
Best-selling author Paul Sheldon has just finished his latest book, a departure from his successful romance series, and after a near-fatal car crash, wakes up with his body broken and being cared for by a former nurse who proclaims herself his “number one fan”, Annie Wilkes. But she ultimately revels in his vulnerability and dependence, and she becomes unhinged and violent upon discovering in his latest novel he’s killed off her favorite character. Sheldon is her prisoner, and what ensues is a manipulative power play and struggle for Sheldon to reclaim his life and career.
King has said he created the character of Wilkes as a metaphor for his cocaine addiction, and the story places the audience in the grips of a demon, to be sure. Even more so in the intimate space of Farmers Alley Theatre, where this psychological thriller is so up close and personal, it feels as if we’re in the room. Audible gasps and involuntary talk backs abound as the twists and turns emerge.
The effects are created and heightened by the phenomenal design work. All of the action takes place at Wilkes’s house, here designed by Tom Shuster primarily as a turntable with the bedroom, kitchen, and hallways between the two through which the actors move and the scenes unfold. It’s incredibly efficient, inspired, and heightens the drama terrifically.
Lights and sound work together beautifully here, changing the atmospheric pressure, the weather, the time of day, and the mood seamlessly. From snowstorm to thunder and lightning to the tedious passage of time, from day to night, again and again, to beautiful moments in which Wilkes opens imaginary curtains to let the sun shine in, casting brightness as well as the shadows of window panes, every detail is attended to by Lighting Designer Lanny Potts complemented by Joe Court’s sound design. Costumes by Director Kathy Mulay and props by Savannah Draper are every bit as meticulous and central to creating time, space, character, and mood.
Though it’s Annie Wilkes’s unpredictable and volatile moods and ensuing actions that drive this story, and Laura Jordan is wonderful in this role, slightly underplaying her to excellent effect. Though somewhat physically demure, her emotions shift from controlled to wild, turning on a dime and yet utterly convincing. Jordan is in full command of her voice and movements, and she’s utterly terrifying.
Paul Stroili’s role as Sheldon is largely in response to Wilkes—as written, the audience’s experience is his experience, and he embodies and emotes the excruciating pain and debilitating fear with aplomb, a real feat given that he is primarily confined to a bed. He screams out, breathes audibly, and effectively reveals more subtle emotions through his face. He’s warm and charming; we’re rooting for him despite the odds with his formidable foe, and we can’t help but cringe in solidarity.
And in this “Misery”, adapted by William Goldman for the 2015 Broadway production, there is the benefit of a third character, Sheriff Buster, who creates interesting obstacles and yet another horrifying twist in the show. Here he is played with naturalness and heart by Michael P. Martin.
Director Kathy Mulay is known primarily as a director of musicals, but with “Misery” she has real chops maximizing the thrills, the stakes, the suspense of a dramatic stage play. With great attention to detail, the story unfolds as if it were happening to the audience, hearts synching as one to buoy us through the thrilling, catharsis of this truly excellent show.
Misery
Farmers Alley Theatre
March 5-21
https://www.farmersalleytheatre.com/shows/misery
