6 Degrees of Separation
By John Guare
Directed by Mickey Handwerger
With Carol Cohen, Ben Cornwell, Jamie Hanna, Dan Kavannaugh, Richard McGraw, Ricky Peete, Heather Quinn, Niji Ramunas, Kathleen Ruttum, Sue Struve
May 4-14, 2007

Six Degrees of Separation first opened off-Broadway in 1990. Its original ten-week run was extended almost immediately. Audiences lined up in hopes of ticket cancellations to see this play that explores late twentieth-century society as deftly as it does universal human relationships. Called a tragicomedy by some critics, Six Degrees of Separation is a witty, biting, yet ultimately sincere commentary on what drives people: the desire for money, fame, social standing, comfort, and, for the lucky, a desire for meaningful human connection. Guare based the premise of his play on an actual incident—a young African-American man gained access to the homes of upper-class New Yorkers by pretending to be the son of actor Sidney Poitier—but the creation of the play is an imaginative tour de force. Guare uses the props of the late twentieth century, such as social issues and art, to create a comprehensive picture of a fragmented society, one in which those simple six degrees that bind people together are overlooked, blatantly ignored, and, very occasionally, celebrated.

REVIEWS

'Six Degrees of Separation' May Bring Us All Together
By Mary Johnson/The Baltimore Sun
May 11, 2007

Dignity Players launched its 2007 season May 4 with John Guare's Six Degrees of Separation, providing a fascinating evening of theater meticulously delivered.

The 1990 play is based on an incident in which a wealthy New York couple welcomed Paul, a man who claimed that he was the son of Sidney Poitier and a friend of their son at Harvard, into their home. After discovering their guest had lied, Ouisa and Flan Kittredge re-evaluate their own lives.

The title is based on the implausible principle that everyone is connected through a chain of six people. This theory might have made sense to a quintessential New Yorker like the late Leonard Bernstein or to Woody Allen, but I can accept it only in terms of this play, where in a minimalist set of only two chairs, a poor young black man arrives after being mugged in Central Park.

Paul establishes a rapport with Ouisa, the wife of a successful Upper East Side art dealer. Together they break through racial and class barriers that eventually force them to conront the degrees of separation in their relationship. Perhaps Ouisa and Flan also assume false identities as they charm their South African guest, financier Genevieve, to invest $2 million in an art scheme.

Mickey Handwerger, co-founder of Dignity Players, directed the play. The troupe's intimate theater and small stage space at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Annapolis deman strong acting skills to simulate reality. Actors are seated in the first row with easy access to the stage to maintain fast pacing. The set has only one significant prop - the two-sided Kandinsky canvas portraying chaos on one side and control on the other along with perhaps a number of other dualities.

Most demanding is the role of Ouisa, well-played by Sue Struve, who easily makes the transition from a suspicious host to a fiercely compassionate maternal figure who pleads with her husband Flan to help create a new life for Paul.

The always reliable Richard McGraw gives another of his thoughtful, fully dimenational portrayals in the unsympathetic role of art dealer, hustler, and gambler Faln, who seems most alive when making deals and least comfortable relating to his children.

This play is dailogue heavy, albeit clever and hip. At the preview last Thursday, Ricky Peete as Paul sometimes recited his lines without much feeling, particularly in the earlier scenes with the Kittredges. Later, Peete became more convincing, delivering a masterful discourse on J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye and establishing a strong rapport with Sue Struve's Ouisa and the younger actors.

Al the wealthy, liberal South African Genevieve, Carol Cohen delivers a solid, convincing and nuanced performance.

Of the young supporting players, I found Jamie Hanna's Trent Conway riveting. The young innocent couple newly arrived in Manhattan in search of an acting career - Heather Quinn as Elizabeth and Robby Rose - also left a pwerful impression.

Dignity Players Connects with Six Degrees of Separation
By Jane Elkin/Bay Times Weekly

Stanley Milgram presented his small-world theory 40 years ago, but it took John Guare's deft treatment of this ingtriguing notion to create a phenomenon. His 1990 script, based on a true story, earned the New York Critic's Circle Award for Best Play, spawning film and television spin-offs, a populare game called 'Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon' and a charity.

If you saw the movie andliked it, you'll love the play. If you missed or didn't quite understand it, do yourself a favor and see Dignity Players' production. Where the move lost the humor to a garbled soundtrack, frenetic pace and pretentious characters, here is a streamlined plot and characters who are, with one exception, believable, funny and likeable.

Take Paul (Ricky Peete), for instance, a hustler and conman who gains entree into the homes of New York's upper crust by posing as Sidney Poitier's son. Will Smith's imposter sounded like he was delivering dry, rehearsed speeches; Peete is convincing as both perp and prep.

Paul has a good racket going as a mugging victim. He seeks refuge at the homes of wealthy people whose children he claims to know from their Ivy League schools. He is so charming that his nursed, fed, clothed, housed, entertained and bid farewell with wads of spending cash.

He is shockingly unmasked, however, when hosts Flan (Richard McGraw) and Ouisa Kittredge (Sue Struve) find hims with a male prostitute (Santos Ventura). The discovery leaves them both betrayed and sad as Paul as instrumental in helping them clinch a deal with South African art investor Genevieve (Carol Cohen). Ouisa in particular has taken a shine to him. When friends Kitty (Kathleen Ruttum) and Larkin (Dan Kavanaugh) share much the same story, and it appears Dr. Fine (Nick Beschen) was similarly victimized, the group realizes their children are the common bond. They enlist the kids' help in discovering Paul's true identity.

Enter the petulant and spoiled Kittredge offspring, Tess (Niji Ramunas) and Woody (Ben Cornwell), and Dr. Fine's hysterical and verbally abusive son Doug (Jamie Hanna). Tess coaxes an admission from her former classmate Trent (also played by Hanna), he he shared the biographies of everyone is his address book in exchange for Paul's sexual favors. Armed with his knowledge and Trent's linguistic and etiquette coaching, Paul passes as one of the elite.

Meanwhile, Paul has convinced a struggling and naive couple, Elizabeth (Heather Quinn) and Rick (Robby Rose) that he is Flan Kittredge's abandoned love child. He then scams then and seduces Rick, whose resultant suicide leads Elizabeth to the Kittredges' door, demanding justice.

The minimalist approach of director Mickey Handwerger - who is the one-man band of this production - draws on the script's strengths, coaxing the best out of actors who enter from front-row seats like performance artists. The set is skeletal, with simple staging and lights used to good effect.

Aside from a flagging pace near the end, the only problem is miscasting on McGraw as Flan. Ruttum and Kavanaugh are particularly convincing as a married couple; Hanna steals the show for his over-the-top depictions of an angry and need young man, Snatos Ventura is triple cast as doorman, hustler and detective.

This production is refreshing or being both deep and entertaining. It reminds us of humanity's interconnectedness and the far-reaching repercussions of our behavior, without being heavy handed. It is time and money well spent.