Review: THE REVLON GIRL at The Players

Some shows you watch, others you feel, and truer words cannot be spoken about “The Revlon Girl,” Neil Anthony Docking’s powerful, heartbreaking drama about the aftermath of a tragedy, presented by The Players at Barker Playhouse.

On October 21, 1966, in the small Welsh mining village of Aberfan, a giant slide of waste slid down a mountain, killing 144 people—116 of whom were children. A group of bereaved mothers meet regularly in a dingy, mostly empty room atop a pub to help each other cope. Eight months later, on this day when the play takes place, they have invited a salesperson from Revlon to share beauty tips and perhaps help them feel somewhat normal again.

The Revlon representative (Julia Curtin) is welcomed by Sian (Betsy Rinaldi), frustrated by a leak in the ceiling’s skylight window, yet anxious and excited about the beauty consultant’s visit. They are soon joined by the seemingly unassuming Marilyn (Rachel Nadeau), who has turned to a psychic to help her make sense of what happened; the high-strung, foulmouthed Rona (Colleen Stewart), disguising her anguish with anger; and the devout, expectant Jean (Sarah Quintiliani), who tries to convince herself that the disastrous incident was God’s will.

Accompanied by tea and the occasional cigarette, the women take turns in the beautician’s chair, and their makeovers are interspersed with cries of loss, outbursts of fury, and stories of their everyday lives, which are understandably less ordinary since the tragedy. The Revlon girl manages to maintain her composure while absorbing the room’s pervasive sadness—weathering the occasional snarl and rejection of her services from her prospective customers—but only for so long. The careful, poised direction by Lynne Collinson and Karen Besson allows each of these women to shine beautifully and brightly beneath an overarching darkness of loss and grief.

Collectively and individually, the performances are outstanding, haunting, and remarkably poignant. Rinaldi is magnificent as Sian, who tries to be the most principled, positive member of the group, until her façade comes crashing down. Her transformation is captivating and devastating. Stewart’s keen portrayal of Rona is affecting and gut-wrenching, delivering several much-needed moments of comic relief amidst her understandable rage.

Nadeau’s delivery is spot-on, subtly yet forcefully conveying Marilyn’s profound inability to forgive herself while she searches for explanations, and Quintiliani is flawless as the contemplative, incorrigibly stoic Jean, who seems incapable of resuscitating her maternal instincts. As the glamorous albeit reluctant Revlon lady, Curtin’s understated, exquisite performance is the perfect combination of elegance and nervousness, demanding the attention of the audience as well as her counterparts on stage.

Despite the bleak subject matter, “The Revlon Girl” is an emotionally charged, extraordinary production that effectively examines pain and grief, with an underlying theme of recovery and hope.

The Players’ “The Revlon Girl” runs through December 15th at the Barker Playhouse, 400 Benefit Street in Providence. For tickets and information, call 401-273-0590 or visit https://www.playersri.org/

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