By June April

HARTFORD — A rhythmic pace, superb acting, and credible and absorbing story line have come together to make Lanford Wilson’s Book of Days a production very much worth seeing at Hartford Stage.

Playing through November 20, the East Coast premier of Mr Wilson’s newest creation has already received the well-deserved recognition it deserves. Book of Days won the coveted 1998 American Theatre Critics Award for Best Play.

The Hartford Stage production is a collaborative effort, and a highly successful one.  It is jointly produced with the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Mo.  It is also a continuing, 35-year association between the playwright and the award-winning director Marshall W. Mason. The duo has worked on 58 productions together.

Mr Wilson is a native Missourian, and Book of Days is set in the fictitious town of Dublin, Mo. The story is a contemporary piece, which parallels the story of Joan of Arc.  Here, a young woman (who just happens to be doing the lead in the community theatre’s production of George Bernard Shaw’s Saint Joan) defies the efforts of the powers that be to accept what she feels is a murder.  The so-called powers are willing to let the death be classified as “a hunting accident.”

The struggle to suppress truth rings throughout history and continues today.  Book of Days is a mystery on one level, a study of the human spirit on another, and a sociological look at the struggles between church, government, industry and ideals on a third.

The set by scenic designer John Lee Beatty is marvelously simple and effective.  Like an open stage in the overall spirit, there are hidden surprises within the basic framework.  To quote the award-winning Mr Beatty, “…there are a few hints of religion and mystery, and as in all mysteries, including this one, a revelation.”

Opening the play with a verbal litany of demographics, the actors enter, criss-crossing from several points and forming into what seems to reflect the Greek chorus of old, hinting at what is to come.

The twelve actors in Book of Days are the purveyors of “poetic realism,” the professed philosophical style of the Wilson-Mason team.  Not one is to be faulted on their performance; each offers a masterful portrayal and understanding of their characters.

Lighting, music (which was a cappella) and costumes all worked beautifully to make Book of Days an exciting, memorable and meaningful theatrical experience.

(For final weekend performance and ticket details call the Hartford Stage box office at 860/527-5151.)