Review
Love, Punky
Where Eagles Dare
July 22, 2006
VanLoan
vanloan@nyconstage.org
Part of the Midtown International Theatre Festival, Love, Punky is a heartfelt if somewhat slight entry to that perennial genre of theater, the parent-child reconciliation. In this case, it's mother /daughter who come to terms (although not of endearment). The huge "elephant in the living room" in the story is alcoholism and how it colored the life of Jess (nee Jessica) and her mother Rosie. Told in flashback as the adult child of an alcoholic, Jess is a struggling writer in New York City suffering from underachievement issues and depression. Rosie is at home in Ohio now being cared for by her oldest daughter, Maggie (who was absent during Jess's childhood, at school we assume).Maggie now feels the resentments and pressures of caring for an alcoholic and feels Jess should take a more active part in the proceedings. When convinced that Rosie's latest bender might be her last, Jess once again returns home.
Author Robin Hopkins has written a sharp and at times witty script which seems to have a vague autobiographical feel. She also plays Jess with the right amount of resigned detachment and sarcasm. However, there is a glaring error in the show. We are never allowed to see Rosie under the influence. While not expecting something out of "Days of Wine and Roses", a climatic drunk scene is necessary otherwise Rosie comes off as simply kooky and eccentric. And thereby Jess comes off as petulant and whiney. This situation is not aided by the fact that Michelle Sims as Rosie is not quite up to the part. The yeoman work is therefore left to Emma Galvin as the young Jess (in flashbacks). She makes us believe in the dysfunctional relationship of a young girl having to carry the burden of an alcoholic mother with little visible help. Elise Rovinsky does what she can with the rather underwritten part of Maggie. A more dramatic Rosie is what is needed to bring the piece to a level of empathy.
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