(Posted December 7,
2005)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Unless it's
cash, it's rare to find a Christmas gift that's worth receiving more
than once.
But A TUNA CHRISTMAS is such a gift
– great material in the hands of two extraordinary performers that
never grows old.
It is, it is.
Joe Sears and Jaston Williams have
been touring the country since 1982 as the denizens of
tiny Tuna, Texas ("Where the Lions Club is too liberal, and Patsy
Cline never dies"). GREATER TUNA, A TUNA CHRISTMAS
and RED, WHITE AND TUNA have delighted audiences from
Broadway to Birmingham with good-natured satirical looks at the
foibles of small-town life; GREATER TUNA was even adapted
into a memorable HBO special in the 1980s. Along the way, Sears,
Williams and co-author/director Ed Howard have been showered with
praise for their work, and recognition such as Sears' 1995 Tony
nomination for Best Actor in a Play.
For the uninitiated, the two performers play
24 roles, from town tea-leaf reader Pearl Burras and gun
shop owner Didi Snavely ("At Didi's Used Weapons, If We Can't
Kill It, It's Immortal") to the Humane Society's often-injured Petey
Fisk and Sheriff "Rubber Sheets" Givens.
This show hilariously probes the mystery of
the Christmas Phantom as we await the judges' decision regarding
the Yuletide yard display contest that self-appointed social
queen Vera Carp has won for the last 14 years. Like the other
entries in the TUNA trilogy, it also has some heartfelt
moments that make us care about these undeniably colorful
characters.
You'd think after all these years the bloom
would be off this rose from Texas. It's a tribute to the fine
material that Sears, Williams and Howard have devised, and
the total commitment onstage from Sears and Williams, that this work
seems fresh each time we see it.
Perhaps it's because these terrific actors don't
merely play the roles that have brought them more than two decades
of applause and adoration – they inhabit them, in essence recreating
them every night. I've seen all three shows more than once, and I've
never felt for a moment that I was watching Sears or
Williams act. Their words and actions seem spontaneous every
time.
Linda Fisher's costumes, Loren Sherman's set, Ken Huncovsky's
sound design and Root Choyce's lighting frame the actors'
performances perfectly. Howard's direction keeps the show's pace and
traffic patterns appropriately transparent – he knows well that
we're not supposed to see anything but Tuna and the people that make
the "third smallest town in the Lone Star State" so special. And
dressers Corby Jackson and Karen Jones deserve a special nod for the
monumental task of assisting the multitude of costume changes Sears
and Williams make during the performance.
What a present these tours give us each time they come
to Nashville. A TUNA CHRISTMAS, and Joe Sears and Jaston
Williams, are truly the gifts that keep on
giving.
To See
The Show…
A TUNA
CHRISTMAS ended its run in Tennessee Performing Arts
Center's Polk Theater on Dec. 9. For more
information, visit www.greatertuna.com.
(Posted December 7,
2005)