Review: ELLIE at Desert Ensemble Theatre

Desert Ensemble Theater (DET), in residence at the Palm Springs Cultural Center, presents the world premiere production of ELLIE by Palm Springs playwright Bruce Bonafede, March 8–10 and 15–17, 2024: A play about crime, punishment, and how men kill the thing they love.

The theatre is one of the last remaining institutions of education and learning when it comes to our society and the human condition. An audience gets to peer into the lives of people they may never come into contact with at any point in their lives. Through good theatre, we learn to cultivate empathy, compassion, wit, and discerning critical thinking skills. As a reviewer, there are various levels of craftsmanship we are obliged to critique. I am an enthusiastic theatergoer who wants to see every production in town striving to put out their best work and then thriving through multiple seasons of excellence. One of my favorite production companies is Desert Ensemble Theatre where they always try to push the envelope regarding content and play selection. Their current offering is a World premiere play by Bruce Bonafede; entitled ELLIE.

ELLIE is a two-person play that focuses on the relationship of brothers -- Richard (Richard Marlow) and Warren (Abe Daniels) -- who are grieving the death of one of their wives. Their mourning sparks a confrontation that lays bare their life-long love/hate relationship and leads to shocking actions that change their lives forever.

Warren lost his wife in a terrible car accident while he was at the wheel because he misjudged the curve in the road, and the vehicle was plunged into the waterfall river below. Ellie was killed, and Warren was tossed by the raging waters against boulders leaving him severely injured, with several broken ribs.

At the opening of the play, the brothers are returning home from Ellie’s funeral. The level of bitterness and discourse between Richard and Warren is evident from the moment they step into the house. Warren is in complete physical agony and Richard must assist – almost carry -- him to a chair in the living room – where he will sit for the duration.

As they break out an expensive bottle of Scotch the more they pour the more they reveal many hidden secrets which Amplifies the already noticeable volatile feelings they have for each other. Like most siblings, a deeper Love/Hate affection is under the surface. However, due to the already combative behavior and dialog from the beginning; trying to invest some empathy for these characters was a task.

A two-person play like this must have all the elements perfectly aligned. Solid capable actors to keep the energy and characters compelling. Exceptional writing with a story that is unusual, entertaining, humorous, and thought-provoking. Couple that with a keen eye for direction that immediately turns it into a memorable classic and you will have a box office success. Iconic two-person plays like “The Gin Game”, “Love Letters”, "Whose Life Is It Anyway”, and such musicals as “I Do! I Do”, and “The Last Five Years” prove that with an unbeatable core team, you can have timeless success. I noticed at Saturday night’s performance the conduit was not perfectly aligned. All the elements were there and the production team is always top-notch at Desert Ensemble Theatre. But, something seemed off on our night of viewing. 

The actors: Marlow and Daniels were each fulfilling the duties of their characters as written and as directed. Daniels who is chair-bound the entire story has the daunting task of keeping all of his energy from being absorbed into his chair -- Which is one of the hardest and relentlessly exhausting physical experiences for any actor. Daniels proved that as a trained professional, he can keep the energy moving. One slight critique of his performance, which I did like a lot, was the use of his Scotch rocks glass. Picking it up and setting it right down hard at the start of every new speech could have been more effective if placed or picked up at specific times. Marlow is good as the younger brother, and the two men play well off of each other.

The writing: This being the first World premiere I can see the vast potential for this interesting story. Talking heads with minimal staging leaves a bulk of the work to the audience. The two talented actors had many repetitive lines of dialog and, perhaps, a more condensed version would keep the plot unfolding much faster. With a little more massaging of this intriguing project, it could have legs, I look forward to seeing the future incarnations of this creative work... because of the sensitive plot twists and too many spoilers, I will refrain from disclosing much more of the story.

ELLIE is worth seeing for audience feedback and reactions. This is an interesting play with good actors, who deserve to share in its growth and full potential.

The set, sound, and lighting: Desert Ensemble utilizes the venue so well. Thomas L. Valach designed a beautifully well-crafted set that looks so structurally sound and sets the mood perfectly.

Lighting designer Nadia Stegen and Sound Designer Damian Mercado add immeasurably to the overall value of the production. The lighting for this production was designed by a student from Rancho Mirage High School. The future of our younger theatre community is strong.

Executive producers Shawn Abramowitz and Jerome Elliott Moskowitz are committed to growing the art of theatre by producing innovative plays that underscore the complexity of human interaction. DET’s internship and Scholarship program mentors local high school students by providing real-life work experience in the theatre and financial support for continuing their education in the performing arts. Support this theatre so they can outgrow their space, or better, be forced to extend all of their theatrical runs for months.

Performances are part of DET’s 13th Season “Off-Center at the Cultural Center.” Curtain times are 7:30 pm Friday, 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm Saturday, and 2:00 pm Sunday. Tickets are $37.50 and are available at www.desertensembletheatre.org. For more information, call (760) 565-2476. Located in the Palm Springs Cultural Center, 2300 E. Baristo Rd. Palm Springs, CA

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