Steamy and volatile, "Anna in the Tropics" electrifies Sierra Madre Audiences

---Theatre review

Even before the play begins, patrons of the Sierra Madre Playhouse will be wowed by the amazingly authentic set: a Cuban cigar factory constructed with massive, rough-hewn beams, tall wooden shutters, and aged brickwork; dressed with wooden work tables, catwalks, railings, barrels, and boxes; and bathed in a diffused yellow-gold light suggesting a warm tropic sun. The delicate scent of real tobacco leaves adds to the ambiance.

Kudos to Ed Haynes and his crew for designing and building the perfect setting for Nilo Cruz's Pulitzer Prize winning play "Anna in the Tropics," which depicts the time (1865-1931) when cigar factories hired "lectors" to read classic novels aloud to their workers. Equal praise is due Corky Dominguez for his insightful, daring, and imaginative direction.

The story opens in 1929 as a zealous street hawker (William Franco Vasquez) entices two Cuban gamblers to wager on off-stage cockfights. Across the stage a trio of Latino ladies clusters on a wharf and eagerly awaits a ship's arrival.

The hawker is persuasive and one man's wallet swells while the other's is emptied. Santiago (Gerry Del Sol) offers shares in his cigar factory as collateral for a loan. Cheche (Arturo Medina) smirks as his half-brother looses it all.

The women discuss their newly-hired soon-to-arrive lector. He must be skilled, have clear diction, and read emotionally from his heart. Ofelia (Minerva Garcia) and her grown daughters, Marela (Vanessa Marquez) and Conchita (Claudia Vazquez) all swoon when they meet and hear the handsome young Juan Julian.

Eric Neil Gutierrez plays the new lector. His good looks, tall stature and smooth demeanor are just right for role. He reads Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" to the workers from a slightly elevated platform in the factory, while the men process the tobacco and the women roll and band cigars. His passionate, sensual delivery stirs romantic dreams and illicit desires in the women and far different emotions in the men.

Each is affected by the novel's powerful words and reader. A wife's jealousy flashes into an overt sexual desire that Juan Julian is eager to assuage, often openly. (A cautionary note here: one of their scenes is quite explicit and might be rated PG-13, if not R, for sexuality.)

A young girl's sweet fantasies are destroyed in an act of lust and savagery. Cuckolded husbands respond to their shame with bitterness and violence ... and understanding. One couple experiences sweet forgiveness and an act of love so tender, it squeezes the heart.

Factory policies and politics play a secondary role in the play as "the old ways" are challenged by modernity. In one instance workers are called to vote on policy – with a congenial ending – but one that hints of labor disputes in the not-too-distant future.

Several actors receive enthusiastic applause at the end of their scenes. Minerva Garcia (Ofelia, the factory owner's wife) is one that the audience loves from her first appearance. Her expressions, gestures, and reactions are priceless. There are several very funny (if a bit naughty) moments that elicit hoots and shouts of laughter. Garcia has a central or contributing part in each of these. Brava!

Gerry Del Sol (Santiago, the owner) performs every aspect of his complex character with equal insight and skill.

Serafin Falcon's performance of Palomo, the son-in-law, also deserves note. His character could have been dull, but Falcon plays him with such sincerity that we find ourselves rooting for him (even though he leaves one important question unanswered).

After the shocking and poignant conclusion to the play, the audience rises as one in a sustained standing ovation with whistles and shouts of Bravo! An exceptional play expertly performed and produced. Worthy of a repeat viewing!

Time/Dates: Fridays & Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2:30 pm through November 13, 2010.

Admission: General-$20, seniors & students- $17, children 12 & under-$12.

Reservations: (626) 355-4318 or www.sierramadreplayhouse.org

Location: Sierra Madre Playhouse, 87 W. Sierra Madre Blvd., Sierra Madre, CA 91024

NOTE: Christine Soldate produced the classy program which contains historic information about early lectors and factories, and photos of the set's construction.

NOTE: Oscar Mursuli, owner of a cigar manufacturing company in El Monte provided expert instruction/demonstrations in the handling of tobacco and cigars, as well as providing authentic paraphernalia.