‘Veronica’s Room’

Press, 10 March 1984, Page 8

‘Veronica’s Room’

“Veronica’s Room,” by Ira Levin, directed by Claire Marsh for the Elmwood Players. March 7to 10,14 to 17. Running time: 8 p.m. to 9.40 p.m. Reviewed by Gerrit BaMman. *

A cracking pace and a sparkling tale of the macabre; a psychological “who dunnit" that keeps you poised on the edge of your seat until the very last revelation. It would be unfair to tell too much of this tale except to set the early scene. A young couple is accosted in a restaurant by a retired Irish couple, who claim the young girl is the spitting Image of a young woman they once knew. The lookalike can help them to humour a dying friend in their care, will she help? Her young man wants to dissuade her but he does not succeed. v

Brought into a fastidi-

ously kept room, the removal of the cover sheets reveals a room lodged firmly in the 19305. From red chaise longue to Victriola, the room exudes a bygone era. The room belonged to Veronica. Why was Vernonica kept there? t Who is the patient to be humoured? Why an elaborate disguise and all the trappings of a major masquerade? The answers come late. They are entirely credible and the audience must undergo considerable anxiety and stress before all is revealed. The plot is carefully developed and anything but predictable. The four-person cast is extremely competent and conveyed the atmosphere of horror and terror expertly. Barry Grant’s shambling Irishman, bent over and scrabbling, set up the contrast for his reappearance.

Toni Glue gave an excellent performance, first as the decrepit Irish woman with an accurate accent followed by an American accent of equal strength. John Riddell, as the young man, had deceptively little to say or do in the first act and appeared weak until his arrival and dominant role in the second act where the difference became all the more noticeable. Plaudits of the evening must gb to Helen Coulson, who produced a consistent American accent while undergoing horrendous emotional variety. Her consistent and strong performance gave the production a heart of kauri.

Claire Marsh has directed the play with accuracy and finesse, making it one of the punchiest productions produced by the Elmwood Players.