Look Back in Anger

Reviewed by Holly Bartges

John Osborn’s play Look Back In Anger exploded onto the stage in 1956. Nothing like it had ever before been witnessed on the stage. “Anger” blasted into the audience from one smart-mouthed tormented young man, Jimmy Porter, leveling everyone in his path.

Michael Stricker (Jimmy) and Suzanne Fayette (Alison) in Paragon Theatre’s production of Look Back in Anger.

In his time Osborn revealed a vital element of world society that perhaps some were aware of, but never talked about: anger.

Paragon Theatre Company’s choice to produce this nerve-wracking play is perhaps even more relevant today. Anger spills out of every nook and cranny, doing what it does best, leveling everyone in its path. In our complacent world gagged by political correctness stressing politeness to the breaking point, Jimmy Porter speaks loud and clear. Director Wendy Franz doesn’t muzzle him, doesn’t even try, but she does know how to shine the brightest light on the five characters, letting them shine.

Michael Stricker climbs inside Jimmy’s soul letting it loose with vengeance in a one room flat in the Midlands England. His barbs cut deep into his docile wife, Alison, beautifully portrayed by Suzanne Fayette. It is difficult to imagine being enthralled by anyone ironing on stage. Fayette does it. It’s not so much her ironing that intrigues, it’s her demeanor living with and adapting to Jimmy’s constant outbursts.

Jimmy’s best friend, Cliff Lewis, tentatively tries to stand up to him. Warren Sherrill gives Cliff hesitancy, as well as gut and grit. When he’s had enough, his physical encounters with Jimmy only fuel Jimmy’s verbal fire.

From the beginning, the characters make you wonder why anyone in their right mind would tolerate him in the slightest. A clue of right-on success by playwright and production when audience members want to engage in dialogue with characters not understood.

Jimmy has reason to be angry. In the mid-1950s when he took his first breath on stage, he lived in a cultural complacent atmospheric attitude. Jimmy wanted life. He wanted to know life mattered. He wanted something significant. He wanted reaction. He didn’t want contentment. He wanted action. Frought with wit, humor and exquisite constructed sentences of high-powered tension, Jimmy is as uptight as an e-string on a violin. Stricker grabs him by the throat making him his own.

In the progression, Fayette allows Alison’s vulnerability depth and love seep through. In spite of it all, she not only loves him but also needs him. It is a tight walk for any actor to portray one side of a personality and still be able to open the window to allow the granite strength determination of the stuff inside to show. Fayette knows how to do it.

Onto the scene Kate Avallone bursts as Helena Charles, Suzanne’s best friend. Cocky, vivacious, sensuous and rolling in desire, Avallone is simply delicious. Wearing her prowess on her shoulder, her ulterior motive still comes as a surprise. Not afraid to stand up to Jimmy, she slings the barbs back into his face.

To take her home, Alison’s father, Colonel Redfern arrives driven by Dell Domnik. Redfern knows little about his daughter’s life. He understands even less about what whirls inside her. Domnick wears Redfern’s emotional containment with proper “Colonelitis.”

Through honest words floating up within Jimmy with deep hurts and confusion, the why’s and wherefore’s unfold providing an understanding of what makes this angry young man tick.

With the cluttered set designed by David LaFont, the ambiance reflects Jimmy’s frustration. LaFont has provided exquisite detail to the Porter’s strangled world.

Paragon Theatre Company only produces a few shows a year, but the detail and quality they demonstrate, all done with volunteers, makes their shows worth waiting for. New production companies struggling to make their mark would be wise to spend time talking with these people. They not only know how to build sets, and characters, but they know what is required to build a company on a sound foundation. Their effort does not go unnoticed. Paragon moves toward becoming one of Denver’s premier theatre companies.

Look Back In Anger is not a production to be seen. It is a show to be experienced that will bring forth a dialogue with others as well as with oneself. Trust me. It is important.