Henrico Theatre Company opened a quiet, heartfelt play this past weekend. Tender Lies, a comedy-drama by Nancy Pahl Gilsenan, focuses on an old man’s efforts to help his tenants achieve personal growth. He nudges them along with “tender lies” carefully crafted to encourage them to move forward with their lives.

Arlo Gibson (John Hagadorn) owns a quaint house in 1960s San José, and he has assembled a collection of broken misfits living under his roof. Sheila (Amy Mawyer) constantly worries about her physical appearance and fears she’s a terrible mother to Ben (Matt Hackman). Ellie (Rebekah Spence) is losing her memory. Mrs. Galarza (Beth McKenzie-Mohr) is a drunk who can’t hold a job, and her daughter Isabel (Louise Mason) spends her spare time sitting on the same bench sketching the same street in charcoal, all by her lonesome.

The story is told through Ben’s memory, 21 years later. Hackman plays both the adult Ben and the character’s teenage self, and he does a great job distinguishing them. He gives the teenager suitably awkward body language and a still-developing voice, while he presents the adult as more poised, confident, and articulate. He makes a wonderful narrator as he guides us through the events, and you believe him as a teenager.

Hagadorn brings gravitas to the role of the wheelchair-bound Arlo. He’s a natural as the wise, crafty old man whose heart is in the right place, and Hagadorn ensures that that heart shines through. Arlo remains likeable from start to finish, despite his penchant for dishonesty.

Mason gives an appropriately subdued performance as Isabel, introducing her with an air of mystery and charm that makes the audience eager to learn more about the character.

Mawyer is amusingly neurotic as Sheila. Spence nails some great lines as Ellie. McKenzie-Mohr is fun as a Spanish-speaking drunk. Brian Martin does a fine job as the self-centered banker Mr. Bellon, as does Don Polaski as the insensitive Mr. Fuller.

The house itself is an important character, specifically its front porch where everyone gathers. Set designer Lin Heath gave it the necessary care and attention. It looks great and it’s a functional set, and director Richard Koch makes full use of it. Kudos also goes to the set construction crew — they clearly put a lot of hard work into it.

Henrico Theatre Company made an excellent choice with Tender Lies. It starts off a little slow, but it comes together wonderfully. More importantly, it gets you thinking about the nature of white lies and whether they’re more of a help or a hindrance.

Photo Gallery

Photos by Gene Payne

The Cast

• Ben: Matt Hackman
• Arlo: John Hagadorn
• Ellie: Rebekah Spence
• Sheila: Amy Mawyer
• Isabel: Louise Mason
• Mrs. Galarza: Beth McKenzie-Mohr
• Mr. Bellon: Brian Martin
• Mr. Fuller: Don Polaski

The Crew

• Director: Richard Koch
• Stage Manager: Amber dePass
• Set Design: Lin Heath
• Light Design: Emily Clarkson
• Costume Design: H. Lynn Smith
• Properties Coordinator: Richard Koch

Disclaimer: Henrico Theatre Company provided two complimentary media tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review.

Sometimes you just need good dumb fun, and Henrico Theatre Company’s production of Fools is indeed good, fun, and all about dumb.

The Neil Simon comedy takes place in 1890 in the remote Ukrainian village of Kulyenchikov, which has been cursed with ignorance for the past 200 years. The villagers are incapable of learning, and they can barely even remember common words.

Young schoolmaster Leon Tolchinsky (played by Matt Hackman) arrives and attempts to educate the populace, especially fair Sophia (Leah Hicks), with whom he’s instantly smitten, despite the fact that this 19-year-old has only recently learned how to sit down. Leon has a rival for Sophia’s affections, the villainous Gregor Yousekevitch (Charles Wax, who — full disclosure — was one of my high school theatre directors). Can Leon break the village’s curse and win the love of Sophia?

This isn’t Simon’s strongest script. It can get a bit cheesy, especially in how Leon instantly falls in love with Sophia. However, the whole thing is just so good-natured and unpretentious, it exudes plenty of charm. The villagers may be fools, but they’re nice, well-meaning people. Their ignorance provides plenty of opportunities for humorous misunderstandings.

Hackman makes a likeable lead. He brings great energy to the role, and he manages to be irritated without ever becoming irritating. Hicks also does a fine job as Sophia, and the two work great together. The script doesn’t do much to develop their chemistry and leaves them with all the heavy lifting. They prove more than up to the task. Dan Gerstenlauer and Laurie Follmer make a wonderful comedic duo as the bumbling Dr. and Mrs. Zubritsky.

The entire cast is clearly having fun, so the audience does as well. Saturday’s performance generated consistent laughter at the Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen.

A star in and of itself was the combination of Amy Berlin’s direction (Editor’s note: Ms. Berlin is a reviewer for ShowBizRadio) and Lin Heath’s set design. Berlin has choreographed plenty of movement to keep the physical comedy flowing, and Heath’s set provides multiple levels to diversify the visual appeal. A particular highlight was watching Leon struggling to climb a balcony to see Sophia, right as she rushes out her front door to see him down there.

A nice thing about this show is how clean it is. There’s nothing crude, disgusting, or inappropriate. It’s all about having fun. It won’t challenge you, but it will amuse you. Fools is great for families who want to introduce their older children to live theatre.

Photo Gallery

Photos provided by Henrico County Recreation and Parks

Cast

• Leon Tolchinsky: Matt Hackman
• Snetsky: Tyler Simpson
• Magistrate: Jim Scott
• Slovitch: Barbi Partlow
• Mishkin: Don Polaski
• Yenchna: Sandra Clayton
• Dr. Zubritsky: Dan Gerstenlauer
• Lenya Zubritsky: Laurie Follmer
• Sophia Zubritsky: Leah Hicks
• Gregor Yousekevitch: Charles A. Wax

Production Staff:

• Director: Amy Berlin
• Stage Manager: Tiffany Shifflett
• Set Design: Lin Heath
• Light Design: Matthew Landwehr
• Costumes: Charlotte Scharff and Betty Williams
• Sound Design: Richard Koch
• Properties Coordinator: Richard Koch

Disclaimer: Henrico Theatre Company provided two complimentary media tickets to ShowBizRadio for this review.

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