By Michael Buzzelli
Tom Stoppard’s “Arcadia” is a reference to two famous paintings, one by Nicholas Poussin and the other by Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, more commonly known as Guercino. The painting depicts the same events, retold by different artists.
In Stoppard’s play, the past and the recent past comingle in Sidley Park, one large country estate in Derbyshire.
In 1809, a roguish Septimus Hodge (Elija Corbin) tutors young Thomasina Coverly (Emma Delaware). Hodge gets himself in trouble with Ezra Chater (Colin Villacorte). Hodge has been caught in the gazebo with Chater’s wife.
In 1993, the pompous Bernard Nightingale (Riley Nevin) journeys to Sidley Park and meets with the current Coverly family, Valentine (Ayden Freed), Chloe (Julia Resnick) and Augustus (Rayhan Khimji). Once on the property, he encounters Hannah (Lorna Lominac), an author he panned in a scathing review years earlier.
Stoppard’s play is about time, life death, but it’s also about mathematics, poetry and the pursuit of love and sex. If it sounds highbrow, it is, but it is also has some deliciously funny moments.
There’s also a moment when Chater wishes to kill Hodge for giving him a bad review. There’s a lot of talk about how hurtful criticism can be (you have to wonder if the playwright was lashing out at a bad review of his own).
No one needs to worry about a bad review of this production.
Corbin is wonderful as the ne’er do well tutor. He shines every moment he’s on stage.
Lominac delivers a terrific performance as well. She exudes confidence on stage, in character and as an actor.
Jocelyn Stoffel’s Lady Croom is another fine performance. While she plays the imperious matriarch, she shows some softer sides, a nuanced vulnerability.
Delaware is charismatic and oozes joy. It’s a beautiful but stirring contrast to her character’s tragic fate.
Thomas Smith infuses droll humor into the role of Jellaby, the butler. He has a huge presence in a small role.
Michael Montgomery’s costumes are top notch. The Regency costumes are so good, they look like they were stolen off the set of “Bridgerton.”
Emmaline Naud’s scenic design is a beauty to behold. The tall marble-esque Doric columns and faux atrium arches create a classical look, with the barest hint of the pastoral garden beyond the doors.
Philip Winters gets some excellent work out of his actors. Though, some of the dialogue seemed rushed, and there are a few moments when the actors sit with their backs to the audience a little too long. It’s the curse of the thrust stage.
You don’t have to understand Fermat’s Last Theorem, Latin, or any advanced study to enjoy “Arcadia.”
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“Acadia” runs from December 4 – 8, 2024 at the Highmark Theatre inside the Point Park University Theater, 350 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. For more information, click here.
