4 newportbeachindy . com JULY 5 , 2024

By Eric Marchese | Special to the NB Indy

It didn ’ t take long for Ernest Thompson ’ s 1979 play “ On Golden Pond ” to be adapted for the big screen . Thompson himself revamped his script in 1981 and it was filmed in short order and released in December .

Yet , check out Newport Theatre Arts Center ’ s production of the original stage version , directed by James Rice . and you ’ ll quickly surmise that the moviemakers literally missed the boat .

At NTAC , “ On Golden Pond ” sails along , a slice of life that captures both the pain and the ineffable joy of the human condition . Rice and company realize what they have , and they ’ ve taken great care to preserve the play ’ s strengths and downplay any potential flaws .

In the hands of director Rice and his cast , the tone of Thompson ’ s tale stays on an even keel , with understated acting . The play ’ s humor isn ’ t allowed to descend into being nasty or mean and its more heartfelt moments are honest and real , without risk of descending into bathos .

In this respect , NTAC ’ s “ On Golden Pond ” is imminently more accessible , and therefore more successful , than the Hollywood version . This “ Golden Pond ” is less emotionally overwrought than the film , and that ’ s a blessing . Overall , though , it ’ s the sense of art reflecting life that makes this production work so well .

For 47 consecutive years , from May through September , Norman and Ethel Thayer ( Gary Williams and Harriet Whitmyer ) have lived at their summer home on the shores of

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Harriet Whitmyer , Lee Samuel Tanng , Briana Donze . Photo credit to Sarah Whitwell

Golden Pond in rural Maine . The play depicts their 48th such visit , which has a different vibe for the couple . Norman , about to turn 80 , has become physically and mentally slower , leading Ethel to suspect this might be their final time at the idyllic retreat . Fearing the worst , she invites daughter Chelsea ( Briana Donze ) to the cabin in the hopes that Chelsea and Norman will somehow resolve the spiky , thorny interactions that have always plagued them .

A professor emeritus of the University of Penn ., Norman obviously has a keen mind and enjoys using it as a cudgel against anyone he deals with . He ’ s also irascible , prickly , and exceedingly blunt . “ Ornery ” is just one word heard in the play to describe him .

Ethel ’ s sunny disposition is seemingly at odds with her husband ’ s .

EDITORIAL

EDITOR Christopher Trela christopher @ newportbeachindy . com

DESIGN / PRODUCTION

CREATIVE & MARKETING DIRECTOR Tracy Powell

Much of the fun in watching “ On Golden Pond ” is observing the interplay between even-tempered Ethel and cranky Norman .

Chelsea enjoys a naturally warm connection with mom Ethel and reveals the strain of her interactions with Norman – as Norman says , “ I ’ m her father but not her dad .”

We can see that Norman has always been too much of an SOB to show his daughter even the most elemental kindness . As the gloves come off , Thompson has Norman deliver one of the play ’ s most brutal , and therefore memorable , lines : “ I didn ’ t realize we were mad at each other . I just thought we didn ’ t like each other .”

Norman is especially caustic toward Chelsea ’ s new boyfriend , Bill ( Lee Samuel Tanng ). Playwright Thompson has Bill endure Norman ’ s verbal bullying only so long before standing

SALES

ADVERTISING SALES TEAM Carol Josepher , Chris Mattingley , Adrienne Kruse , Mara Hertel

PRODUCTION MANAGER Tina Leydecker tina @ firebrandmediainc . com

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up to him , foreshadowing Chelsea ’ s attempts to get her and Norman ’ s conflicts out in the open to force him to acknowledge them .

At NTAC , technical director Jim Huffman ’ s scenic design creates a sufficiently rustic yet cozy and comfy looking cabin that offers us a gorgeous view of the lake from the ceiling-tofloor porch windows . We see the lake surfaces , the shore , lush trees and greenery , bright sunlight and puffy clouds .

The cabin is realistically furnished with modest furniture , books , a clock and various nick-nacks , and Joshua Serrano ’ s lighting goes from the bright sunlight of daytime to the deep blues of twilight .

Rice ’ s cast – notably Williams and Whitmyer – bring NTAC ’ s staging its share of appealing warmth . The way Williams ’ s voice bobs up and down defines much of Norman ’ s personality . More crucially , even as Norman admits his increasing senility , Williams keeps the brakes on overdoing the character ’ s emotions .

Norman could be exceedingly caustic , but not here , as Williams tempers Norman ’ s dour persona with a restrained , natural delivery . By the play ’ s end , the character is more at ease with those around him and therefore more recognizably human .

Whitmyer , by the same token , avoids readings we ’ d recognize as oversentimental . Just as thankfully , the duo don ’ t trot out Fonda and Katharine Hepburn personas in attempts to re-create the film version .

Throughout NTAC ’ s staging ,

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