The handicapped theater company PHAMALy had been presenting rousing Broadway musicals for 17 years before adding dramatic plays to its repertoire in 2007. With its solid new staging of “The Diviners,” it’s clear that its acting is catching up to its singing.
Anchored by a measured, understated performance by Jeremy Palmer, PHAMALy is presenting, perhaps for the first time, a nonmusical that can stand alongside the work of the better theater companies in town.
That’s the handiwork of first-time PHAMALy director Christy Montour-Larson, who has lovingly crafted Jim Leonard’s Depression-era tale with a decent and unpretentious touch. She also happens to be at the top of her craft, most evident in the creative, confident way she stages the harrowing, climactic river scene.
“The Diviners” is gothic prairie melodrama much in the same family as “The Rainmaker,” only with the opposite meteorological problem: Too much water.
It’s set in a 1932 rural Indiana town of just 40. As in “The Rainmaker,” a mysterious stranger strikes up an unusual farmhouse friendship. Only here it’s between a lapsed, runaway Kentucky preacher (Palmer) and young Buddy, a feral, filthy wild child who hasn’t bathed since his mother drowned, leaving him with a potentially lethal case of ringworm.
What they have in common is they’re both mad at God. That the townies hope the fallen preacher can lead the child to water (both the physical and baptismal varieties) is the kind of paradox that runs through this play like a river.
The title refers to the boy’s clairvoyant ability to divine water, both a blessing and a curse for a simpleton to whom water represents violence and death — and yet is his only hope for life. The playwright, as if announcing the arrival of this preacher in flashing neon light, has given him the name “C.C. Showers.”
Thankfully, there’s nothing so telegraphed about Palmer’s natural and emotionally honest performance, which reveals much about the inner conflict of the man, without ever specifying why he turned from God. Young Daniel Traylor makes an impressive turn in the difficult, critical role of Buddy, though he’d better serve the play, and his own performance, if he could dial it down at the outset. Traylor’s raving, terrified Buddy starts in such a frenzy, he leaves himself nowhere to go when it counts the most.
They get solid support performances, notably Jason Dorwart as Buddy’s tough-love father and Lyndsay Giraldi-Palmer as his 16-year-old sister, Jennie Mae. She’s a potential love interest for C.C., while Kathi Woods and Elise Marie Hallof play busybodies more interested in hooking up C.C. with God. Needed comic relief comes from the bumbling friendship between Melvin and Dewey (Edward Blackshere and Nick Ortiz-Trammell).
“The Diviners” is almost the first PHAMALy production where it’s not even necessary to point out that all of the actors have disabilities ranging from arthritis to renal disease to diabetes to deafness.
Almost. To varying degrees, PHAMALy stagings inevitably deepen our understanding of a given story while defying our expectations of an actor’s presumed physical limitations. In a sign of company maturity, Montour-Larson trades very little on that here. But when it’s evident, it’s powerful.
Don Mauck, for example, is a blind man who, here, does not play a blind Basil. So even though it’s a total gimmick, it’s thrilling to see the actor ride off the stage on a bicycle.
Without belaboring the point, “The Diviners” speaks loudly against those who equate disability with low intelligence. After all, it’s Buddy, the most simple-minded character, who possesses the gift — the divining of life-giving water — that all those considered stronger, smarter and more intelligent, lack.
That’s what PHAMALy is all about.
John Moore: 303-954-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com
“The Diviners” ***
Drama. Presented by the Physically Handicapped Actors and Musical Artists League. Written by Jim Leonard. The initial run of this show at the Aurora Fox is over, but it also plays from Feb. 24-27 at the Arvada Center. 2 hours, 15 minutes. 7:30 p.m. Feb 24-26, 2 p.m. Feb. 27. $26. 303-739-1970 or
To see more production photos from “The Diviners,” scroll to the bottom of this page
Video podcast: Country Dinner Playhouse demolition
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This weekend’s theater openings
“The 39 Steps” In this quirky British sendup of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 spy thriller, four actors play more than 50 roles, retooling the classic thriller into a hilarious comedy that still manages to be faithful to the movie. Through Feb. 20. Lake Dillon Theatre, 176 Lake Dillon Drive, 970-513-9386 or
“Boeing Boeing” In this popular French farce set in the 1960s, Bernard is a Parisian architect with three stewardess fiancees, each convinced she’s the only one. It all works perfectly, until an old school friend arrives. By Marc Camoletti. Through Feb. 13. Presented by TheatreWorksat the Bon Vivant Theater, 3955 Cragwood Drive, Colorado Springs, 719-255-3232 or
“Bye, Bye Birdie” This musical satire of 1958 American middle-class society was inspired by the phenomenon of Elvis Presley’s induction into the Army. In it, Elvis knockoff Conrad Birdie comes to Sweet Apple, Ohio, to kiss a random girl goodbye before reporting to duty. Songs include “Kids” and “Got a Lot of Living.” Through March 20. Candlelight Dinner Playhouse, 4747 Market Place Drive, Johnstown, 970-744-3747, 1-877-240-4242 or
“Circle Mirror Transformation” Touching story of a community theater drama class in New England that finds a misplaced entourage of outsiders in the hands of their teacher, Marty. As they experiment with theater games and group exercises, hearts are quietly torn apart and tiny wars of epic proportions are waged and won. A tender human fragility underscores this witty story of transformation, both subtle and monumental, in an unsuspecting group of strangers. By Annie Baker. Directed by Christopher Leo. Through Feb. 26. 1080 Acoma St., 303-623-0524 or and here’s
“Extremities” In the aftermath of an attempted rape, a woman turns the tables on her attacker. This is the debut staging by the Edge, previously known as the E-Project. Through Feb. 20. 9797 W. Colfax Ave., Lakewood, 303-232-0363 or
“Map of Heaven” In this world premiere drama by the Denver Center Theatre Company, Lena’s painting career is on the rise. Her maps of places real and imaginary are poised to take New York by storm. But when her radiologist husband makes a mistake, Lena’s life is upended. Michele Lowe’s contemporary relationship story explores the consequences of a single lapse in ethical judgment. Through Feb. 26. Ricketson Theatre, Denver Performing Arts Complex, 14th and Curtis streets, 303-893-4100 or and here’s
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Complete theater listings
Go to our complete list of in Colorado, including summaries, run dates, addresses, phones and links to every company’s home page. Or check out our listings or
The Running Lines blog
Catch up on John Moore’s roundup of theater news and dialogue.
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Video podcast: Afterthought Theatre at Kent Denver School
In preparation for Martin Luther King Day, Afterthought Theatre came to the Kent Denver School to present “The Meeting,” which imagines a meeting between Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Video by John Moore, The Denver Post.
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