(Jem is especially frustrated that, as he sees it, his father isn’t more of a fighter.) There are the visits by bile-spewing Bob before and after the trial and, of course, Atticus’ wisdom-instilling parenting of his emotional children. “To Kill a Mockingbird” consists of the expected courtroom fireworks, of course, but this production often is at its best at the Finch home. But are the white male farmers who comprise the trial’s jury reasonable people? It’s obvious to Atticus - and he believes it should be obvious to any reasonable person - that Mayella’s drunk of a father, Bob Ewell (an appropriately hate-inspiring Joey Collins), is responsible for the bruises left by a horrific act. “Atticus took us to church every Sunday,” Scout tells us, “but the courtroom was his chapel.” Take the case Atticus does, of course, the man holding firm to his belief the justice system will do right by Tom. They share the narration duties - when Dill joins in, he humorously notes that, like the Finches, he will be both narrator and part of the narrative - and guide us through a mostly effective non-linear telling of the tale. Sorkin hasn’t reinvented the “Mockingbird” wheel with a production that opened on Broadway in late 2018, even though his treatment of Harper’s story has drawn some criticism due to changes made.Īnd while he mostly refrains from the rapid-fire dialogue that, while impressive, can become draining for an audience member, his gift for making the most of two or more people speaking to each other is on full display here.įrequently, those people are widower Atticus’ young children, the feisty Scout (Melanie Moore) and her often-angry older brother, Jem (Justin Mark), as well as their new friend spending the summer in rural Maycomb, Alabama: the wise-beyond-his-years Dill Harris (Steven Lee Johnson). The crackling adaptation by Sorkin - the writer-director best known for TV shows including “The West Wing” and films such as “The Trial of the Chicago 7” and “Being the Ricardos” - breathes new life into the classic 1930s-set story, which, while dealing with racism and violence, manages to do so with some warmth and humor. While Thomas - the veteran of stage and television, dating to his time as John-Boy on the 1970s series “The Waltons” - portrays small-town Southern lawyer Atticus Finch in the production that’s in Cleveland through mid-May, Aaron Sorkin is the reason to see this take on Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 1960 novel. Tony-winning producer and Northeast Ohio native Orin Wolf brings ‘Mockingbird’ tour to Playhouse Square ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ actors Richard Thomas, Jacqueline Williams talk up Playhouse Square-bound play With apologies to Richard Thomas, the real star of the First National Tour of “To Kill a Mockingbird” isn’t on stage at Playhouse Square.
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