Educating Rita

Critiqued by Holly Bartges

Wouldn’t it be wondrous if stuck-in-the-mud professors, living in a ‘doorless’ box, thinking students weird because of refusing to live in the box with them, could break free of their fuddy duddy cynical attitudes?

Rita Broderick and Wade Wood in Educating Rita. Photo Credit: Dell Domnik

Wouldn’t it be wondrous if uneducated, knowledge hungry individuals could throw abandonment to the four winds to do whatever necessary to learn no matter what the cost?

In a magnificent, beautifully written script Willy Russell does just that with his play Educating Rita. Under the sensitive, creative direction of Rick Bernstein, The Victorian Playhouse presents an amazing production with Rita Broderick as Rita and Wade P. Wood as Frank.

Educating Rita is one of the most beautiful productions engulfed by The Vic, of which there have been several. Educating Rita reaches into a class by itself, grabbing on several levels. You meet two characters from opposing universes collide and connect. You observe two outstanding actors take ownership of their characters and connect with each other. The process of the two actors, however subtle, is as compelling to study as is the unfolding of the characters’ personalities.

The connection between Rita and Frank is simply awesome. Rita an uneducated, unsophisticated, hungry-for-knowledge young woman wants to know everything. Taking a literature class from Dr. Frank Bryant, she wants more than what the class has to offer. Demanding, with a skillful, determined, disarming smile, extra time in tutorship, nothing has claws strong enough to deter her.

Frank doesn’t want to be bothered. Bored with his life, tired of being tied to class schedules that just happen to coincide when the Pubs are open where he really wants to be to drink freely. Taking on an educated, unsophisticated student is the last thing on earth he wants, and tells her so in no uncertain terms. Ordering her not to come back, she leaves in a flurry of hyped enthusiasm calling over her shoulder, “See you next week.”

A two-character play often poses its own unique challenges. To keep the action natural, interesting, and fluid, Bernstein does a masterful job of doing just that. Broderick and Wood’s moves around the spacious office flow naturally and easily from Rita and Frank. There’s no sense of a character moving across the room just because.

Set in Liverpool, England in Frank’s office of a university campus, Bernstein and Wood developed a warm inviting set including a fireplace, a busy desk, bookcases, a comfortable sofa, and a quiet reading corner next to the large bay window looking out over the campus. Ignoring the busyness of the desk, one wants to snuggle in front of the fireplace with the many academic books at one’s fingertips.

Humorous moments abound with the free spirited Rita unabashedly asking down to earth honest questions most students would be too embarrassed to ask for fear of being classified a Ninny, but questions they all want to ask someone somewhere. Frank thinks she’s funny and tells her so. Her feathers ruffle. She doesn’t want to be funny. She wants to be serious. Her funniness sprouts from her unreasonable reasoning that often shows more truth than his disciplined atmosphere. Her trashing rules for unpretentious honesty tickles humored ribs.

Frank lives in the staid world of academia. Rita comes from an unfettered world. She reads trash novels. He cringes over trash novels being classified as literature. Over a year, Rita grows in knowledge and sophistication. Broderick’s transformation with Rita is awesome to behold. She takes Rita in stride. She doesn’t force her, doesn’t push her or jerk her around. The growth comes naturally. Happily with its own sense of funniness, she goes through a period of stepping into the world of pretense. Normal natural common error eager individuals fall prey to because they want what they want and they want it now. Her sense of fashion changes, going from catch as catch can in bold clashing materials to smart pleasing fashion. Susan Lyles’ costuming expertise takes Rita in steps reflecting her transformation when knowledge, behavior, and wisdom walk in hand. Lyles provides Wood with the image of a caught-in-his-own rut professor.

Wade Wood and Rita Broderick in Educating Rita. Photo Credit: Dell Domnik

He looks the part, acts the part, and is the part.

Karalyn Star Pytel’s lighting design and El Armstrong’s sound design melds so grandly into the production, into the story, into the needs of Rita and Frank one nearly forgets they exist translating into a high compliment for both.

Rita grew up thinking she’s dumb, stupid and anything but pretty, acting the part. What separates her from the dumb, stupid, and unpretty simmers the hungering desire to know coupled with an undaunted spirit.

Her husband, Denny, resents her preoccupation with learning. He wants her to stay home and have babies, as dutiful wives are supposed to do. Fidgeting and nibbling around her ego, he’s also convinced Rita and her high faluting professor are having an affair. When he demands she stop seeing her professor or get out, Denny tells her “The time for education is not when you‘re 32 and married.” The hunger for knowledge presses in on her. What she knows she possesses is far too valuable to ignore.

Although Frank floats in the aura of taking great delight in putting her down, laughing at her reasoning, ridiculing her, a sense of intrigue comes through his eyes. Nothing can stop her. Nothing can discourage her. Unafraid to show hurt feelings, unafraid to show lostness, Rita soaks in the punches with honest on the move emotions. Frank has the knowledge. Rita has a wisdom reaching far beyond her experience, allowing herself to wander through tunnels of darkness with a ‘maybe-ed’ hope she will discover some kind of light at the end.

A play endowed with several short scenes, dim light allows the audience to participate in scene changes as the characters continue their quest. This keeps the story flowing, gives further insight into the characters changing moods, and internal thoughts. Frank often presses his gruffness into Rita’s face. At the same time Woods, through his eyes, allows the audience to see beyond Frank’s rough facade. Something goes on within this staid, boxed in disciplined academic mind and Wade owns the expertise wherewithal to give glimmers. Interestingly enough, some of this revelation actually comes during the dimly lighted scene changes. Broderick allows Rita’s heart and soul to bubble on her shoulders. Wade engulfs Frank with a living within himself except for the eyes. Eyes reveal insight when the facade wants to lie and hide. If he can’t demand her to go away and leave him alone, maybe he can scare her with his rough exterior. Maybe he can discourage her with his penchant for drink. When a student reports him to the Powers-That-Be because of his inebriated state in the classroom, maybe he can discourage her.

Wood’s take on Frank’s transformation is equally as stunning. Frank shows his blow hardness, diving for a drink whenever and however he can, trusting before he realizes what he is doing. A cryptic honesty slides into the open with rough-edged brashness. It shows in his eyes. The timing is perfection unlimited.

Slowly, honestly, kicking all the way, Frank discovers the freedom in a Rita-type thinking, and she discovers the power of knowledge and how rich her talents really are. Starting at opposite ends of the poles, they reach a meeting of the minds honestly, openly, trustingly, defiantly, and willingly taking the audience on an enchanting, magical, compelling ride into motives, desires, and determination.

Educating Rita should be at the top of the Must See - Must Do list. It has much to give, much to think about, much to laugh, smile, and enjoy. Broderick and Wood paint a portrait with fine brilliant colors that will not dim in the mind anytime soon.

Educating Rita
by Willy Russell
directed by Rick Bernstein