BWW Reviews: Nouveau 47, Crossover Arts Theatre Successfully Birth Norton's SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD

Ask any playwright how they came up with an idea for a play and you're likely to get as many answers as there are stars in the sky. A childhood memory can spark an idea. Personal or family trauma may be the impetus. Religious or spiritual insight may trigger a thought that ends up captured on paper. A current event or situation may serve as the conduit between a writer's brain and pen.

Award-winning playwright Jonathan Norton doesn't indicate the inspiration behind his latest play "Seek First The Kingdom of God"(still in development), but once a full production is mounted on stage, audiences can expect a fully engaging story that will hit close to home in terms of how some families treat aging family members.

Walking into the space, one couldn't help but FEEL the connection this reading had with the late Margo Jones and the indelible imprint she left not only on Dallas but the American regional theater movement as one of its primary midwives.

Directed by veteran actor Dennis Raveneau, who served as the Narrator (complete with his richly textured and nuanced voice), the setting of the play takes place in a nursing home in Dallas, Texas (although the action could be anywhere in the U.S.) and features the outstanding talents of Dallas-based actors Amber Devlin, JuNene K, Matthew Tomlanovich and Vickie Washington.

View slideshow: The Cast and Director of Jonathan Norton's "Seek First The Kingdom of God".

K. breathes life into T'Wanna, an 'around the way homegirl' with a past she works hard to put behind her through service to the home's residents. Her compassion is genuine and so is her devotion to her friend and co-worker Georgia, played with matter-of-fact sassiness by stage veteran Washington. Both K. and Washington are masters at drawing you immediately into their characters and creating an instant affinity for the back stories they bring to the table.

The same holds for Devlin, who plays the snooty and obnoxious Josie who looks down on anyone she deems as beneath her. In this case, it is whoever is responsible for taking a family heirloom from the room of her father who is suffering with Alzheimer's. She is desperate to retrieve the property and is joined by her brother Stewart, a pseudo religious type played with conviction by Tomlanovich, who will pray on command to manipulate a situation to get with he wants.

Although music stands were present to hold cast member scripts, you often forgot they were present as the actors went directly into the dialogue and acted scenes, some with minor blocking successfully executed by Raveneau's direction. Subtle light changes and sound effects were utilized to provide as close to a real production as possible.

As a full production is certain to be mounted in the near future, I will hold off on providing a complete review at this time. I will say if the upcoming production is anything like this reading, audiences are in for a real treat.

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