BWW Reviews: Going After THE COAL DIAMOND and LONE STAR

Cultivating a night of two shows that really show the drastic differences between how men and women deal with uncomfortable situations, the Sun Prairie Civic Theatre presented "A Night of Bridge and Beer" this past weekend. Featuring two one acts, The Coal Diamond by Shirley Lauro and Lone Star by James McLure, SPCT brought in a lot of fans who were ready for a fun evening.

Lauro's work highlights four women who spend their Friday lunch breaks gossiping while playing a few hands of Bridge. The ladies ramble on about the personal lives of their coworkers before diving into the story of one woman who received an engagement ring with a large piece of coal stuck inside of it. Jokes border on the line of discomfort for the ladies at times, but Liz Leonard as Inez keeps the one liners coming throughout the show.

Leonard's dry humor is fitting for Coal Diamond as the women try desperately to prattle on about their colleagues without appearing to be in 'poor taste'.

Directed by Livvia Goff, The Coal Diamond recently received an award to advance to the regional community theatre competition in Michigan this spring. That's of no real surprise as this cast is crisp. Each is very well aware that Lauro's piece is not full of crude humor. What it does have are moments of uncomfortable glances and cutting remarks that are easily transformed into laughable moments.

Why? Because audiences are well aware of how real these moments truly are - even sixty years after the show is to take place.

On the opposite side of the spectrum is McLure's Lone Star.

An hour long one act rife with raunchy humor, drunken debauchery, and a lot of howling, this show is the perfect

companion to Coal Diamond. Lone Star is a romp outside of a Texas dive bar where main character Roy is attempting to make sense out of his post-Vietnam life.

Christopher Purdy as Roy is fascinating. Even when he is reveling in his own lecherous ways, audiences can't look away. He could be likened to that family member that everyone is embarrassed to acknowledge but remains the life of the party. Russell Wolff's direction for this production is spot on. When there seems to be no hope for the protagonist until the very end, especially in a show that would make one's grandmother faint, there has been excellent direction given.

At first, it would seem that the two shows didn't fit together very well - until further examination that is. Both are comedies in exceedingly different ways which made the evening enjoyable for audiences with witty or spicy humor. Though the road is ended for the cast of Lone Star, The Coal Diamond's cast must stay sharp for their upcoming Michigan performance.

If you are interested in helping to make the path to Michigan smoother for the folks of SPCT, feel free to visit Sunprairiecivictheatre.com or visit their Facebook page to find ways to donate to their journey to regionals.

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