Review: THE WOMAN IN THE MIRROR at Revolution Stage Company

“Blue, tree, run.” 

Those three little words begin Dayna Steele’s play, The Woman in the Mirror. Three little words you will try very hard to remember because you know what they are. You’ve done this before when you took Mom or Dad, or your Uncle Bob to the doctor’s office. It’s the cognitive test. Remember these three words, we’re instructed, and that seems fairly simple, until we meet Fran.

Fran Nicholson (alternately played by Steele and Rebecca McWilliams) is beloved by all. She is a stringer of pearls and a broker of diamonds. She is a wife (now widow), and a mother of two who cooks up a storm, loves her family a whole bushel and a peck - a phrase always said at the end of a conversation. She's the proud mother of Houston’s Queen of Rock and Roll Radio, Dayna Steele; and she’s the author of a new and alarming amount of post-it notes stuck on things throughout her home. Tell Dayna you love her a bushel and a peck.

The diagnosis is a crushing blow: Alzheimer’s, and from your seat, you’re whisked back to when you were a caretaker, or when someone you loved disappeared inside a disease, just slipped away and you think “f*ck” (a word oft used, and deservedly so in this play) what were those three words again? Blue, tree … something.

Steele comes from a rock and roll background and consequently she’s going to swear. Get over it. She also drinks wine like it’s water, but seriously- who can blame her? Certainly not me. 

What Steele also does, is find the humor in this painful journey. She doesn’t just leave you out there, an emotional wreckage. Tragedy plus time equals comedy - and while dementia itself is not funny, some of the situations are.

Steele is a very likable storyteller, she knows how to grab the audience with that voice, and her authoritative presence. But Steele isn’t just Houston’s Queen of Rock & Roll Radio, she’s also a businesswoman, an author, an in-demand speaker, and the brains behind NASA’s The Space Store. She’s every bit the overachiever, a class A problem-solver which makes you keenly aware of the frustration at her inability to fix this.

Everyone needs a coping mechanism, and although wine plays into the story, Steele relies heavily on her fans (who call themselves Steeleworkers) on Facebook, sharing her journey, getting advice, and putting her guts right out there for all to peck at. Vultures had their moments, but mostly what came was support, especially from those that walked a mile in her shoes. (Facebook did the same for me once, and I will never forget the love I was shown. It was a different time, a different Facebook, when people showed up for each other.)

In keeping with the marketing line, “When it comes to Alzheimer’s- if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry” Rebecca McWilliams makes us do both. She plays Fran, and Jo (an amalgamation of support partners straight out of Steele’s imagination) who is kind and caring, then she puts on those glasses and she is Fran in decline, eating up all of the humor with a spoon, and just as quickly spitting out venom. The switch can be quick, and McWilliams never misses a beat. Very nice work. 

The Woman in the Mirror is based on Steele’s best-selling book, which means it is an adaptation of which Steele says Director Laura Stearns, "turned it from a 32-minute Ted Talk into a real play.” Taking nothing away from the playwright (Steele), and the two fabulous actresses (Steele, and chameleon McWilliams), I could not agree with her more.

When telling a story about a heavy subject, it is not so much the subject but how it is presented that makes the impact. As talented as Steele & McWilliams are, and they are, it is Stearns’ creativity and deft direction that makes this production sing. She has not only utilized the space to its full advantage, she keeps the play at a good clip and 90 minutes fly by like 30. It is not overplayed for laughs- one or two sight gags- the rest are authentic, real moments - no fillers. Every beat of the play has something to say, and it never loses its rhythm. 

Stearns is not only a director to watch, she’s a creative in every sense of the word. With provenance from The Guthrie, she first came to my attention with her whimsical direction, set & costumes of Revolution Stage Company's Dickens Writes A Christmas Carol, followed by her creation of the puppets in their terrific production of Avenue Q, to the coolest visual in Witchland, Stearns is a force. Coupled with Revolution’s basic tenet (to produce new works and showcase local talent), the company is well on the road to becoming a forerunner in local entertainment, and hopefully, one day, getting a show to Broadway. We have a LOT of talent here in the desert, and Revolution has tapped into it. It’s not easy being the new kid on the block, but Revolution’s determination is paying off. This is their fourth new work, and while not all of them have been big hits, each work was thoughtful and provocative. Gary Powers and James Owens have created a magical space where just about anything can happen, and it does.

Laura Stearns also designed the costumes, and the set for The Woman in the Mirror which put us (mostly) in Steele’s Houston home, easily morphing into whatever it needed to be. Hats off to the cast, crew, and Props Master Tessa Gregory Walker for set changes that happen in the blink of an eye. At one point everything was gone, and I thought “when did that happen? Projections by Mariah Pryor are really top-notch, including a screen that types, and a moving counter for “likes” on Facebook.

Getting picky here - sound design on the preshow was a bit on the nose (I Will Remember You along with other memorable songs about forgetting), but within the show it was great - recordings of Steele on-the-air play a small but important part, and also lets us hear why Steele was such a beloved on-air personality. 

Light designer Keith Smith did their job well, nothing obtrusive to the action, only enhancements. Both lights and sound took a fun bow during the “game show”. 

It’s a very good, heartfelt play, one that should be seen - and yes, enjoyed. Although it’s a heavy subject, and you might find yourself in tears (raises hand) there is also humor, and within all of this there is help. Not just the kind that comes from understanding and self-forgiveness, but real tangible help in the form of resources. If you’re in need of advice in a similar situation, go to www.thewomaninthemirrorplay.com. 

If you’re not in the Palm Springs, CA area, you can hear Steele talk about her journey on YouTube. If you are in the area, go see the play that illuminates Rosalind Carter’s words, “There are four kinds of people in this world. Those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.”

So … I just have one final thing, a question really … what were those three little words again? 

Run to The Woman in the Mirror at Revolution Stage Company, 611 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs, CA runs through 3/31/24. See website for times, dates, and tickets. 

Photo credit: Alan Carvalho

Director: Laura Stearns

Playwright: Dayna Steele

Script Consultant: Laura Stearns 

Cast:

Dayna Steele as herself (and Fran)

Rebecca  McWilliams: Jo, Fran, Others

Production:

Lighting Design: Keith Smith

Set & Costume Design: Laura Stearns

Projection Design: Mariah Pryor

Props Design: Tessa Gregory Walker 

Production Stage Manager: Kudra Wagner

Assistant Stage Manager: Clare Merritt

Assistant Stage Manager: Heather Joy

Tech Operator: Kirsten Cunningham

Set Construction/Carpenter: Miguel Lauro

Original music: Calvin Adams

In conjunction with Blue Squirrel Productions. General management by Alchemy Production Group.

 

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