Six Degrees aptly connects cast and audience
From there, the play evolved into one in which Paul's deception (he is not a Poitier and never knew the Kittredge kids) of various upper-class New Yorkers demonstrates the ways in which lives are unexpectedly linked while questioning the notion of responsibility and family. Senior Margaret Deli was exceptional as a garrulous doctor duped by Paul's flattery and freshman Pierce Delahunt was convincing and quietly tragic in his own right as Trent, the closeted homosexual friend of the Kittredge children, who was responsible for divulging their life stories to Paul.
The breadth of talent in the show in terms of acting and technical vision was clear. However, the production suffered from a lack of directorial vision. Bauman and Fuller are to be commended for convincingly portraying the parents of college students when they are college students themselves. But in the show's final dénouement, a powerfully written scene in which Ouisa arrives at the realization that perhaps family and love are simply what you will them to be, there was an unmistakable hollowness in all her declarations.
Ouisa's claim that she and her husband are "a terrible match" seems equally devoid of weight. In the world of this production they are in fact a perfect match: Both seem strangely unconcerned with Paul's fate in the hands of an angry NYPD and even their fighting feels perfunctory and transient. This production, rather than allowing Ouisa's character to accept and eventually believe that she is truly linked to the world outside her rose colored windows, seems to allow its characters to settle for superficial revelations that lead them to retreat back
This disconnect between script and stage seems to be related to director Lauren Graham's note in the program, citing Six Degrees as "farce," "love story," "theatre of the absurd" and "hilarious." Certainly there are comedic elements in the script, most artfully captured by Mitch Frank as Geoffrey and Matt Panico as Woody.
The breadth of talent in the show in terms of acting and technical vision was clear. However, the production suffered from a lack of directorial vision. Bauman and Fuller are to be commended for convincingly portraying the parents of college students when they are college students themselves. But in the show's final dénouement, a powerfully written scene in which Ouisa arrives at the realization that perhaps family and love are simply what you will them to be, there was an unmistakable hollowness in all her declarations.
Ouisa's claim that she and her husband are "a terrible match" seems equally devoid of weight. In the world of this production they are in fact a perfect match: Both seem strangely unconcerned with Paul's fate in the hands of an angry NYPD and even their fighting feels perfunctory and transient. This production, rather than allowing Ouisa's character to accept and eventually believe that she is truly linked to the world outside her rose colored windows, seems to allow its characters to settle for superficial revelations that lead them to retreat back
This disconnect between script and stage seems to be related to director Lauren Graham's note in the program, citing Six Degrees as "farce," "love story," "theatre of the absurd" and "hilarious." Certainly there are comedic elements in the script, most artfully captured by Mitch Frank as Geoffrey and Matt Panico as Woody.
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