2nd Story Shines with Fully Committed ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST

Although we might like to believe that things are black or white, one or the other, they almost never are. There are many shades of gray and variations in between. And it can be a blurry distance between two extremes. Or, a fine line between, for example, sane and insane. Who's to say what is crazy and what isn't? And who gets to decide what to do about people deemed to be at the wrong end of the spectrum?

Few plays examine these issues with such depth, pathos and clarity as Dale Wasserman's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, adapted from the novel by Ken Kesey. The play, originally performed in 1963, received Tony awards when it was revived in 2001. It also spawned a movie version in 1975, famously starring Jack Nicholson, which won multiple Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Set in a state mental hospital in the Pacific Northwest, the play revolves around the arrival of new patient Randle Patrick McMurphy. Planning to serve a short sentence in the institution, rather than go to a prison work farm, McMurphy immediately shakes things up among the other patients, jarring them from their usual routines and medicated stupors. He also butts heads with the tough and unyielding Nurse Ratched, who runs the ward with an iron fist.

While many theater companies, from high school to professional, are performing this play, the production at 2nd Story Theatre in Warren is close to as good as you will see. It is a finely tuned and well-paced performance with an ensemble that is almost uniformly excellent. Director Mark Peckham has helped his cast find the truth in their characters, taking them from stereotypical stock "mental patients" to real, flesh-and-blood human beings.

Aaron Morris is quite good as Randle P. McMurphy, although he seems to be trying a little too hard to channel Jack Nicholson at times. Still, he's got the charisma and energy to carry the role and gets the audience to feel for this man who may or may not be the sanest one in the group. A real standout among the other actors is Kevin Broccoli as Dale Harding. Prior to McMurphy's arrival, he's the de-facto leader of the patients in the ward but it's over the course of the play that he comes into his own, growing in confidence and self-esteem. Broccoli handles that journey with skill and is also great at both the dramatic and comedic moments in the performance.

Tim White as Billy, Tom O'Donnell as Scanlon, F. William Oakes as Cheswick, Chris Conte as Martini, and Jason Quinn as Chief Bromden round out a fabulous group of actors who bring real believability to their roles. When the patients are all together on stage, rallying behind McMurphy or cheering on an imaginary baseball game, their joy and excitement are infectious.

The one week link, and it's not extremely weak, is Tanya Anderson as Nurse Ratched. Anderson, who looks and sounds just like Laura Linney, is just too nice, for lack of a better word. She comes across as whining and nagging, rather than having real power and control. She also never achieves the kind of menace or intimidation that Ratched should have. It's hard to believe that any of the patients would really be afraid of her. And harder to believe that she's really the dictator and representative of the cold, hard world outside that she's supposed to be.

It's that world outside that's a final, unseen character in this play. Some of the patients are in the mental institution by choice, for one reason or another. They can't or won't deal with society. A society that might label people "crazy" a little too easily. A society that too often tries to cure insanity with shock treatments and lobotomies. It's also a society that, even though Kesey wrote it in 1962, is still very familiar today. Now we just use pills and medications rather than shock treatments. Even today, it may be that that the McMurphys and Chief Bromdens among us are the ones who are truly sane.

Performances run March 14th through April 7th, Thursdays at 7:00pm, Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm adn Sundays at 3:00pm. Tickets are $25. age 21 and under, tidkets are $20. 2nd Story Theatre is located at 28 Market Street, Warren, Rhode Island. For tickets, visit the 2nd Story Box Office, call 401-247-4200, or email boxoffice@2ndstorytheare.com. Check their website, www.2ndStoryTheatre.com for more information.

Note: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest contains strong language and some adult situations and themes.