Theater Review—

Long Wharf’s ‘Wonderful Life’ Brings Back Theater Of The Airwaves

By Julie Stern

NEW HAVEN — Frank Capra’s classic movie It’s A Wonderful Life has been called America’s version of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. This makes sense on two levels. The first is that they both focus on a protagonist who is “saved” because a spiritual visitor helps him to realize the primacy of personal relationships and the importance of human connections in life (although Ebeneezer Scrooge has to transform his whole personality, whereas George Bailey just has to see how much people love him for who he is).

The second, is that because they press so many sentimental buttons, they are shown with predictable regularity, every December, from obscure late night channels, to local community stages. Sometimes they are performed “straight” — “God Bless Us All” says Tiny Tim — and sometimes twists are added to the plot, but predictably, when they get to the crucial turning point, they trigger the catharsis of tears.

This is not meant as  a precursor to muttering “bah humbug!”  It’s just a fact of seasonal entertainment.

Now, having said that, it’s my happy duty to tell you that Long Wharf has come up the device of presenting It’s A Wonderful Life as a “live radio play,” staged to look as if it is being performed out of New York studio back in the Golden Age of Radio (the 1940s). This arrangement allows for simple but amusing staging: a sound effects man frantically manipulates his tableful of equipment, while a cast of five performers flipping script pages change their voices and accents to become dozens of characters. Lights above the stage cue the audience when applause is needed, and the entire show is interrupted periodically for dramatically drawn out commercials.

Alex Moggridge plays the Jimmy Stewart role of George Bailey, whose entire life was shaped by choices he made for the good of others, at the cost of sacrificing his own dreams. He never got to college, traveled the world, became an architect, or escaped the shabby office of the family Building and Loan Society and the dreary limitations of Bedford Falls.

One Christmas eve when George is planning to commit suicide so that his life insurance will cover a deficit in the bank’s finances, an angel-in-training, Clarence, must “earn his wings” by finding a way to convince George of the value of “the greatest gift”  (the gift of life).

Kevyn Morrow plays Clarence, along with half a dozen other townspeople. Dan Domingues switches from being the Narrator of the story and the leering villain Mr Potter, to George’s hapless uncle and various small children.

Kate MacCluggage and Ariel Woodiwiss handle all the female roles, from George’s loyal wife Mary, his mother and his daughters to Violet the local Vamp.

As one whose childhood was spent listening in hushed darkness to weekly shows like “Suspense,” “The Mysterious Traveler” and “The Lux Radio Theater of the Air,” I have always been a fan of radio melodrama. With The Long Wharf production, created by Joe Landry and directed by Eric Ting,  the time warp is highly entertaining in itself. However, what really makes the show worth a trip to New Haven, is that even as your eyes are focused on the mechanics of melodramatic radio, you can’t help getting caught up in the immediacy of the story. When the heartwarming moments come, the tears flow.

Had it been done as a straight period piece of theater — say like Mornings at Seven or Meet Me In St Louis — it might have been okay, if a little dated. But focused as it is on the voices of the characters alone — without the distractions of actions and stage sets — this Wonderful Life captures attention totally, and judging by the standing ovation given by the largely full house, this is the holiday production to see. Go enjoy.

(Performances continue at 222 Sargent Drive in New Haven until December 31, and will include a special early show on Christmas Eve.

See the Enjoy Calendar, in print and online, for curtain and ticket details.

Please note Long Wharf Theatre has teamed up with The Connecticut Food Bank this holiday season, and is accepting non-perishable donations during the run of this show.)