BWW Reviews: THE HAT Delivers an Engaging Piece of Theatrical Faction

THE HAT, which opened at the Santa Fe Playhouse on March 12, is a personal and highly original tale, dealing with some of the lesser known human stories of world war II. Written by Santa Fe playwright, Dianna Lewis, the play is grounded in historical fact. While the details of this particular story are fictional, the circumstances under which it unfolds are shockingly real.

The play centers around Zillah, a holocaust survivor, who was smuggled out of Poland to an orphanage in Switzerland, as a very young child. All she has to connect her to that time is a picture of her mother, wearing a very distinctive hat. Now a successful photographer herself, Zillah has built her life and her entire identity, around being a Jewish holocaust survivor. Her mission in life has been to seek out and photograph other survivors, not only to honor and dignify their stories, but also in the hope of finding someone who may recognize the woman in the unusual hat and maybe throw some light on who her mother was. The story is complex and touches on many things: betrayal, trust, loyalty, sacrifice ... and love.

The play opens in a gallery in Poland, where Zillah (effectively portayed by by Barbara Hatch) has just arrived for her next opening. She is surprised to find that the owner is Milo (smoothly interpreted by Jerry Maher) a slick opportunist and her one-time lover. Together with her agent/manager, Simon, they set about preparing the exhibits for the show. But Simon is not only Zillah's manager; he is also her current lover and far more devoted to her, than she is to him. Elias Gallegos skilfully takes us with him on Simon's emotional roller coaster ride and through the challenges he endures along the way.

A strange woman, Yanina (engagingly played by Danette Sills) wanders into the gallery, carrying a large, paper bag. After talking briefly to Simon and Zillah, she leaves, but without the bag. Hoping to find something that would help them to find her, they look inside the bag. . . and there is the exact same hat worn by Zillah's mother in the photograph.

Under the expert direction of Cristina Duarte (who is also the Santa Fe Playhouse's new Artistic Director) the production flows smoothly as the events unfold, engaging the audience, both emotionally and psychologically, in this strange and unusual tale. Danette Sills is particularly convincing as Yanina, the Polish woman whose personal story provides the surprising explanation for the mystery which has consumed Zillah's life. All the characters, except Milo (who remains a serial philanderer) are changed by what they experience and what, in the end, they cannot share. To understand why, you'll just have to see the play!

And, FYI, THE HAT was the winner of the First Annual Playwrights' Forum, a project created by the Santa Fe Playhouse, to provide a platform for emerging playwrights. Of the 30 entries received from all over the country, 4 were chosen for a staged reading. Audiences then voted for the one they would most like to see fully produced - and that was THE HAT.

www.santafeplayhouse.org for further info.

Photograph courtesy of Peter Sills.

Optional Photo Credit: Linda LenziWalter McBride / WM PhotosGenevieve Rafter-KeddyJennifer BroskiPeter James ZielinskiMonica SimoesKevin Thomas GarciaBWW-StaffKerry LongVideo Shot/Edited by Jonathan Frank	PR Email to Alert:	Twitter to Tweet At:
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