Orange Girls Continue 2009 Season With COLLECTED STORIES

I don't think you have to be a writer to understand the depth of betrayal at the heart of Donald Margulies's play Collected Stories, but it will certainly resonate deeply with anyone who chooses that path. In addition to showing us the relationship between an aspiring young writer and her teacher/mentor, the play also examines issues of ownership regarding ones' own life story. It's a compelling and engaging tale, and The Orange Girls have put together a wonderfully realized production that features a pair of exceptional performances.

Lisa is an ambitious but shy student who's also an unabashed fan of her teacher, a writer named Ruth. When she's invited to her apartment to go over a story she's written for class, she ends up stumbling mightily in her attempts to endear herself. It's her talent that eventually wins over Ruth, leading to a friendship that will stretch over a period of six years.

Much to Ruth's surprise, Lisa experiences success, getting a collection of her short stories published, and decides it's time to write a novel in order to gain the respect of the literary world. But, the thinly veiled subject matter she chooses for her work causes irreparable damage to the relationship between Lisa and her ailing mentor.

Nancy Lewis is always a joy to watch, and she doesn't disappoint here with her wily and weathered performance as Ruth. Lewis crackles with an intensity that never wavers, even when's the character is struck by illness, and a bit adrift at times. She makes the advice Ruth dispenses completely believable, and it makes the heartbreak that eventually arrives all that much harder to take.

Meghan Maguire is also very strong as Lisa. She's able to capture the character's progression over time with keen precision. She's nervous and clumsy in her early attempts to gain Ruth's confidence. And, she neatly conveys her conflicting feelings when success finally does arrive, radiating both confidence and insecurity at the realization of the responsibility it brings along with it. Her final act of duplicity is almost unbearably painful to watch, because we've come to care so much about these two people.

Edward Coffield's sensitive direction allows these two fine actresses to work without any unnecessary distractions. This material could easily become static and dull, especially since it's just the pair of them onstage sitting and talking for the most part. But instead, this is riveting stuff. Alex Gaines contributes a convincing scenic design which depicts Ruth's cluttered apartment, and Han Fredrickson's lighting scheme provides an especially clever coda.

The Orange Girl's production of Collected Stories continues through August 2, 2009 at COCA.

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