Nashville Notes

By Jaz Dorsey

Another superlative show hits the boards out on Elm Hill Pike this weekend with Cathy Street's production of The Bad Seed. Those familiar with this piece only from the 1956 film, might be surprised by this stage adaptation. I went expecting something like Damien or The Omen- that is to say, some kind of horror show about a demonic child. What I discovered was a serious stage play that fuses the psychological thriller with a creepy parody of such '50s sitcoms as "Ozzie & Harriet", "Father Knows Best" and "Leave it to Beaver."

The script's brilliance, no doubt, has much to do with the fact that the adaptation is by award-winning dramatist Maxwell Anderson, whose other credits include such works as Anne of the Thousand Days, and book and lyrics for the Kurt Weill musicals Knickerbocker Holiday and Lost in the Stars. The original 1954 novel, by William March, captured the era's emerging fascination with psychoanalysis and the "nature vs. nurture" arguments about the origins of criminal behavior: the title refers not so much to the homicidal central character as it does to the genetics which make her what she is, despite her loving middle-class environment.

Street's production is visually stunning, with a truly wonderful set by Rich McCoy and perfect costuming by Lynda Cameron-Bayer. Also outstanding and worthy of comment, are the hair and makeup design, especially for the female members of the cast. It's these visual details which so strongly evoke memories of those '50s sitcoms and give the production it's uncomfortable edginess of a world too perfect to be true.

But all of this would be for naught, if not for the top-of-the-line cast and their outstanding acting.

As the title character, Rhoda Penmark, 10 year-old Lucy Turner makes her mark as a seriously talented young actress who already knows how to establish great rapport with her audience. Her subtle and mature performance might well be the envy of many a more seasoned actor.

The absolutely radiant Lisa Marie Wright gives a gut wrenching performance as Rhoda's mother, Christine, who tries, but ultimately fails, to come to grips with her own dark past and the role that it seems to have played in her daughter's dangerous persona.

Watching Linda Speir and Adele Akin is like watching Bea Arthur and Carol Burnett. Speir plays Monica Breedlove, the Penmark's landlady who, despite her own years of analysis, hasn't got a clue when it comes to young Rhoda. Akin is pathetically hysterical as Mrs. Dagle, the mother of Rhoda's victim, Claude, whose response to her child's death is to drink, drink and drink some more. Rounding out the ladies' side of the team, veteran Nashville actress Kay Ayers is ideal as Miss Fern, the stuffy headmistress of Rhoda's school.

Heading up the mens' section is Jeremy Maxwell as the weird Leroy, Mrs. Breedlove's on-site handyman, who is just as much a psychopath as Rhoda, but far from being her equal (although, actually much creepier in his own way, giving off the vibes of a potential rapist and child molester). Brad Oxnam is somewhat mousy and definitely oblivious as Kennth Penmark, the husband/father of Christine and Rhoda, and Alan Lee, who does a fine job as Emory, Monica Breedlove's brother and the object of his sister's Freudian obsession. Rodney Pickle is solid as Reggie Tasker, criminologist and mystery writer, as are Rob Wilds as Christine's father Richard Bravo and Doug Allen as the stressed-out father of Claud,e and husband of the inebriated Mrs. Dagle.