Editorial Intern
Women have the tendency to dream of their future husbands— what they will look like, where they will work, if they will smoke or drink. As for Laura Wingfield, a high-school and business-school dropout, it is her mother, Amanda, who seems to obsess over the topic more than Laura herself.
The Glass Menagerie, a tragedy by Tennessee Williams, takes place in 1937 in an apartment in St. Louis. The play is narrated by Laura’s younger brother, Tom, who explains the life he had before joining the Merchant Marines, while he still lived with his sister and mother.
The play is actually a collection of memories that Williams recants from when he lived in an apartment with his mother and handicapped sister. Much of this part of the author’s life is reflected into Tom, the name with which Williams was originally born. In the end, Tom experiences the same outcome as Williams once did.
Amanda’s husband abandoned the family long ago. He worked for a telephone company and “fell in love with long-distance.” Although he never actually appears onstage, a framed picture of him looms over them on a wall in the living room. Amanda refers to him multiple times throughout the play.
Tom, played by Adam Mahan, is the narrator and a character in the play. His life consists of working at a shoe warehouse by day and going out at night. His dissatisfied yearning for an adventurous life is slightly relieved by his nightly escape to the movies. He feels that his life will never be truly fulfilled as long as he has to work at the warehouse to support his family.
Tom seems to be constantly annoyed by every little critique Amanda gives him. He states, “Every morning that you come in, yelling that goddamned ‘Rise and shine, rise and shine,’ I think to myself how lucky dead people are,” during one of his meltdowns to Amanda. Although he may seem cruel in this way, Tom always acts in a gentle manner toward his older sister, Laura. He proves this by comforting her when she feels ill and rushing to her when she trips on a step walking down the fire escape.
The character of Tom can be portrayed as dark as well as sarcastic. Mahan’s sarcastic tone and mannerisms throughout the drama make him seem less serious about his family and plans for the future. For example, he occasionally rolls his eyes at Amanda’s relentless jabs.
Amanda, played by Carmen Tunis, continually reminisces about her life in Blue Mountain as a young girl. She doesn’t let anyone forget about the 17 gentleman callers she had one night and brags about how she could’ve been the wife of a planter. Instead, she fell in love with an alcoholic for his charm and only has his picture hung in the living room as a cruel reminder. As a single mother, Amanda has difficulty raising Laura and Tom under harsh financial conditions. Because of this, she relies on Tom’s earnings to keep the family stable.
Amanda’s biggest worry is for her children. Hoping their lives do not end up like hers, she constantly criticizes them to the point that they resent her. The first conversation between her and Tom involves her demanding that he eat his food correctly. “Honey, don’t push with your fingers. If you have to push with something, the thing to push with is a crust of bread. And chew. Chew!” she tells him. Finally, Tom exclaims that he cannot enjoy one bite of his meal with her endless nagging.
Laura, played by Darri Kristen, lets her insecurities keep her from fulfilling her education. Laura has a handicapped leg. At school, she had to wear a brace. Although the sound of it hitting the ground was subtle, to her, she said, “It sounded like thunder!” Kristen plays her character with a persistent stutter, making her seem timid and self-doubting.
Laura escapes her mother’s harassment by spending most of her time admiring her glass menagerie. Her favorite glass animal is a tiny unicorn, which she places by other horses. In a way, the unicorn is a representation of Laura because they both have a physical difference between them and the others around them. In the glass menagerie, the unicorn gets along with all the other horses, according to Laura— probably what Laura wishes she could do with other people.
Jim, played by Darren Bailey, works at the warehouse with Tom. He is also a high-school friend of Tom and Laura. Tom invites him to dinner one night after Amanda begs for him to bring home a gentleman caller for Laura.
In addition to Jim’s work at the warehouse, he also takes classes in radio engineering and public speaking. Bailey uses a lively tone, humorous facial expressions and a hop in his step to portray Jim as a comfortable and energetic individual.
Overall, for those who have read the play, director Phyllis Gitlin, along with lighting designer Donny Jackson, was able to make their vision of the play’s setting and atmospher come alive. Then again, this production would be just as enjoyable for those who are less familiar with the play.
The Long Beach Playhouse will present The Glass Menagerie Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm as well as Sunday matinees at 2pm through Saturday, Oct.13 at 5021 E. Anaheim St. Tickets are available at lbplayhouse.org or by calling (562) 494-1014, option 1.
