American Gothic: The Poetry of Edgar Lee Masters has an interesting premise. The company of young actors make up the characters of Lee Masters’ work and tell the story of the fictional town Spoon River whose people now inhabit the graveyard. Every short poem links to next, so we might hear the story of one Doc Meyers followed immediately by that of his wife Mrs. Meyers. Occasionally, the company break into unaccompanied traditional American song.
There is no doubt that the production suffers for being extremely amateur. Actors shuffled self-consciously in and out of the spotlights and lines were either fluffed or were lost entirely. The quality of acting varies enormously from an embarrassingly A-level standard to an accomplished and promising one. Certainly Hannah Heckman-McKenna stood out; the small variations between the characters she played were believable and she was therefore convincing whether playing the flirtatious Dora Williams or the blind Lois Spears. Others were less successful; Rebecca Salib was guilty of overacting in every single one of her roles.
However, it must be said that this production had a certain charm about it. The poetry of Lee Masters is engaging, poignant and - for the most part - this came across in the company’s delivery. The enthusiasm of the company was also palpable and ultimately the NECC Top Notch players can be pleased with their offering to this year’s Fringe.
