Review: Theater Works' ALMOST, MAINE Is A Tenderly Woven Tapestry of Love In Its Many Forms

A river runs through Almost, Maine, and it is called authenticity. The folks that ride its currents are virtual pilgrims on personal journeys to self-discovery. It is in the wakes and tides of love, in its many forms ~ falling in, being in, falling out of, seeking, losing ~ that they define themselves.

Such is the itinerary that John Cariani created when he crafted the vignettes that constitute ALMOST, MAINE. The work is a collection of heartful encounters, involving eighteen very distinct personalities, set in a place that will not be found on any map, in a town that never got organized and thus never claimed a name beyond Almost.

The glory of Theater Works' staging of this sweetness of a play, directed by Richard Powers Hardt, lies in the amazing ability of its four stars to shift seamlessly from one scene to another and to sculpt, at each new turn, distinctly different characters ~ never stepping over or repeating a prior enactment, a remarkable feat in itself.

Amanda Melby, Amy Garland, Scott Hyder, and BJ Garrett own this show. Their performances are tenderly drawn, understated but potent, brilliantly capturing the idiosyncrasies and vulnerabilities of the lovers that populate Almost.

As the DJ of the town's local radio station signs off for the evening, a different tale unfolds, and with each tale, we learn something new or discern something familiar about relationships, and the words poignant and fallible and hopeful and lost assume a texture and depth of their own.

One may ask how far away is close and discover a truth in a snowball's circumference. One may learn how difficult it is to repair a broken heart. One may find love in the strangest of places and in the most unexpected of moments. One may not truly know the gravity of love until it's been lost. One may rue a moment of hesitation in affirming love. In whatever scenario, such questions and others play out, Cariani's imagination and vision shine just as do the Northern Lights that attract Almost lovers on a cold Friday night.

Theater Works delivers the goods and warms the heart in this stirring production of ALMOST MAINE, which continues its run through November 15th at the McMillin Theater at the Peoria Center for the Performing Arts.

Photo credit to Moran Imaging