Pictured at a rehearsal in the Senior Center Fireplace Room, clockwise from left: Lorri DeVore, Amy Bennett, Ena Nearon, Jane Blakelock, Bill Mischler, Debra Williamson, Jerry Buck, Brenda Hubbard Ibarra, Keith GunderKline, Molly GunderKline, Wayman Favors and Lynda Hardman. (Photo by Lauren "Chuck" Shows)
‘Still Life’ a play for the ears
- Published: November 17, 2024
During a recent play rehearsal in the Senior Center’s Fireplace Room, there wasn’t much physical movement — but the drama was thick in the air.
The 11 actors in the room were rehearsing for an upcoming performance of “Still Life,” a play based on the mystery novel of the same name by famed Canadian writer Louise Penny. The performance, to be presented Sunday, Nov. 24, won’t require a set or costume changes. With a script adapted by playwright Eric Alexandre for audio-only radio performances, the cast invites the audience to experience the story in the theater of the mind.
“Still Life” the play follows closely the events of Penny’s novel — her debut book in what would become a series of 11 works, all centered on the fictional village of Three Pines, in Quebec, Canada. Like the Cabot Cove of “Murder She Wrote,” Three Pines is a small town with a surprisingly high murder rate, and the truth of each case is rooted out over the course of the mystery series by main character Chief Inspector Gamache. A returning cast of characters who live in Three Pines learn over and over again that anyone can be a suspect.
In the second act of “Still Life” — of which the News was treated to a rehearsal performance in October — it’s villager Matthew Croft who undergoes Gamache’s scrutiny for the murder of beloved community teacher and artist Jane Neal.
“Matthew Croft was to remember, for the rest of his life, where he was when the police car drew up,” read Brenda Hubbard Ibarra, the play’s narrator, during the rehearsal. “It was three minutes past 11 on the kitchen clock.”
Ibarra opened the second act after leading the cast through a series of vocal warm-up exercises — particularly important for the audio-only nature of “Still Life,” which relies on the actors’ voices, as well as sound effects and music to be provided by local resident Skip Leeds, to carry the story.
As a longtime professional stage actor and educator, Ibarra represents one end of the spectrum of the cast’s familiarity with the stage, some of whom have professional experience, with others having performed in school or community theater. For some, “Still Life” represents their first theatrical undertaking.
“I’m a total neophyte at this,” said Bill Mischler, who plays Ben Hadley. “I saw in the paper there’s going to be a little play over at the Senior Center, and thought, ‘That’ll be cute and fun.’ Then I show up and there are Oscar-level actors!”
Speaking with the News, the cast said they were drawn in to audition for “Still Life” for a variety of reasons — some were involved with an improv class taught by Justin Howard earlier this year and wanted to continue performing. Others, like Wayman Favors, who plays Agent Beauvoir, said they were looking for a new experience.
“I tend to be a lone wolf,” he said. “I wanted to do something outside my wheelhouse.”
Still others said they were enticed to join the cast by Amy Bennett, who directed the Senior Center’s performance of the interactive mystery “Grounds for Murder” at the Emporium in February and returns to direct “Still Life.”
“The day I met her, she convinced me I should come over here and be in the play,” said Ena Nearon, who plays Chef Gabri. “It takes somebody who cares enough about what they’re doing and has the insight to see people who could possibly do this and enjoy it.”
Bennett — a longtime performer in the improvisational playback theater method, and co-founder of Ohio Playback Theatre — moved to the village in 2020. She had previously directed “Grounds for Murder” for senior groups in Columbus and Chardon, Ohio, she said, because the play calls for a small cast and allows actors to read from scripts while performing. She said she was drawn to the radio play version of “Still Life” for similar reasons.
“As senior actors, we’re loath to memorize lines,” Bennett said. “I think that draws in people who haven’t necessarily done a show before.”
Bennett and the show’s 11 actors have been rehearsing “Still Life” on Tuesdays since early September, immersing themselves in the world of Three Pines and its inhabitants. They said there are elements of the fictional small town that remind them of Yellow Springs — minus the murder, of course.
“There’s a memorial service [for character Jane Neal] with a ritual performed by the women that I could totally see in the village,” Ibarra said. “Everybody’s expressing themselves.”
“I love Ruth Zardo [played by Jane Blakelock] and how she speaks her mind,” Nearon said. “I think that’s very much a personality that you find here.”
“And the bistro’s very much like the Emporium,” Bennett added.
“We play a pair of artists, like [local artists] Deborah Chlebek and Ernest Koerlin,” Molly GunderKline said; she and her real-life husband, Keith GunderKline, play married artists Clara and Peter Morrow.
Exploring their characters, in part, through the lens of Yellow Springs has helped the actors get into character more deeply — and helped them come together as a cast. They said they’re looking forward to presenting their work to an audience later this month.
“The thing about an audience you never want to forget is that they want you to succeed,” Bennett said.
Jerry Buck, who plays Inspector Gamache, agreed: “It’s an almost physical sensation when you realize the audience is with you,” he said.
The actors said they wouldn’t be averse to taking part in another Senior Center-helmed performance like “Still Life” — focused on vocal performance, with scripts in hand — in the future.
“This kind of setup is wonderful, especially for people who are older,” Ibarra said. “It’s really good for us to continue using our voices … and allows people to be really creative without the pressure of climbing up and down stairs and running around — things you have to do in a normal play.”
To that end, Ibarra said she’s working with the Senior Center to formulate and present a two-month class focused on vocal production and oral interpretation of prose and poetry early next year. The aim, she said, would be to present a performance as part of an upcoming Senior Center fundraiser — and she added that she hopes her “Still Life” castmates will return.
“So we’re a troupe, huh?” asked Mischler.
“Yep,” Ibarra said. “We’re gonna all be stars, kid!”
“Still Life” will be presented Sunday, Nov. 24, at 2 p.m., in the Senior Center Great Room. Admission is free.
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