By Jason Hagey and Alisha Hagey
An engaging love story unfolds in the Pioneer Theatre Company‘s production of Fireflies on the University of Utah campus. A retired schoolteacher is living out the twilight days of her life in a small town in Texas. Her life is simple. Her conversation is usually with a neighbor across the street, Grace. She’s respected in her little town and expects a quiet unassuming life when a tall, rugged traveler passes through looking for odd jobs. Between them a spark ignites, lighting up their loneliness. Both are stubborn and set in their ways, but the chance to love and be loved emerges. They must choose if they are willing to let that love have a chance.
It is rare to see a love story that isn’t about the young, but love stories later in life have a beauty not to be missed. When so much of life has passed, the glorious union of two people cannot help to warm the heart. Such is the story of Fireflies. Matthew Barber (Playwright) captures this slice-of-life moment with subtle compassion and a deep understanding of human nature. Taking the story from the novel “Eleanor and Abel” by Annette Sanford, Barber weaves a tale that puts mutual respect and trust at its center.
Kareem Fahmy (Director) produces an expert experience for the audience, establishing scenes that easily pull us into the story. He provides fun moments, witty banter, and creates pleasure in restraint. Fahmy removes the pretense of theatricality and gives us reality. We see humans with foibles and flaws, just like us. The moments aren’t over the top, instead, focusing on the variety of characters. Fahmy’s direction reflects plain people who come with baggage and the complexity inherent to their individual pasts. In short, we see ourselves on the stage.
Leading the cast is Joy Franz (Eleanor Bannister). Franz captures the quirks of aging and doesn’t shy away from it or make it all that her character is. Franz is deft, full of incredible comedic timing, and relatable. She is perfection in this role, providing everything to make Eleanor real and alive, not just a character but a human being fully formed.
Best friend and neighbor of Eleanor is Joy Lynn Jacobs (Grace Bodell). At first, we see her as a bit nosy. She evolves. You come to recognize her chatter as genuine love and respect. Jacobs taps into that nuance, and you just feel like you’ve been given a hug anytime she speaks. Quick to judge, but also quick to forgive and support, Jacobs embodies the kind of friend we all want and need.
David Manis (Abel Brown) is rather enigmatic. His character comes across as honest, but with a history that we begin to see glimpses of by the end. Manis wears the character of Brown like a second skin. He is precise and finished, raw and imperfect as a man seeking to find himself.
Tito Livas (Eugene Claymire) is only on stage for a singular scene, but in that short time, he comes to represent all of Groverdell, Texas. He is a small-town Sheriff who can still quote “Kubla Kahn” by Coleridge, as he learned all those years before in Bannister’s classroom. Livas imbues a friendly folksy, melodic southern drawl charm, that we often associate with the South. There is a depth to him. It isn’t just that he can quote poetry, but that he gives the sense that he finally understands the lessons that were taught to him so long before.
Paige Hathaway (Set Designer) captures the appeal of the South. From the proscenium being covered with house siding, to the decorative metal old-lace gable flourishes, we are transported, looking inside through a window. Hathaway creates a very warm space that feels lived in. It is beautiful and inviting. Her design gives a sense of history. This is in stark contrast to the absurdism of a flying pteranodon (yes, there is a dinosaur – but you will have to come and watch Fireflies to understand why).
Working in beautiful tandem is the lighting design by Cha See (Lighting Designer). The whole lighting design maps beautifully the story being told. Cool to warm tones, to flights of fancy, See is able to create a welcoming hue that pairs with Hathaway’s set.
Also finding just the right balance is Brenda Van Der Wiel (Costume Designer) and Samantha M. Wootten (Hair & Makeup). We know so much about place and character from their looks. I adore Jacob’s church outfit (which is perfectly paired with her church hair comment). We are given insights by the simple changing of Eleanor throughout the piece. At times fussy and then later on, more harmonious, the design by Der Wiel and Wooten is exactly what is needed.
In some Victorian lore, fireflies are a symbol of death. But in the East (and within more recent modernity) fireflies represent passion and love. Fireflies is a beautiful representation of life. As the character, Abel essentially says, life isn’t over just because we age. We still have time to experience the joys and pleasures of love. Fireflies is a deeply touching, often hilarious, feel-like-you-are-sipping-lemonade-with-your-grandmother-on-the-front-porch, kind of piece. The writing is elegant, the directing spot on, and the acting sincere. Fireflies is for anyone and everyone who sees beauty at every stage of life.
Pioneer Theatre Company presents Fireflies by Matthew Barber
Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre, 300 S 1400 E, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112
April 1 – April 16, Monday – Thursday 7:00 PM, Friday 7:30 PM, Saturday 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM
Tickets : $33 – $50Contact: 801-581-6961
https://www.facebook.com/pioneertheatre/
https://pioneertheatre.org/
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