Stage 3 looks at life's end with 'Grace'

By Lisa Millegan
lmillegan@modbee.com

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'Grace and Glorie'
RATING: ***
WHERE: Stage 3 Theatre, 208 S. Green St., Sonora
WHEN: Through Oct. 18; 7 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays, 8 p.m. Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays
RUNNING TIME: 2 hours and 15 minutes, including intermission
TICKETS: $12-$20
INFORMATION: 536-1778 or www.stage3.org

SONORA — At age 90, Grace has been through so many challenges and tragedies that she's not about to be cowed by death.

When she gets a terminal diagnosis from her doctor, she's determined to live life as fully as possible right up to the end. She's not exactly excited when Gloria, a hospice volunteer half her age, shows up to help.

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The two clash, then come to understand each other, in Tom Zieglar's touching "Grace and Glorie," now running at Stage 3 Theatre.

Under the direction of Lloyd Battista, a veteran of Broadway, film and TV, Sharon Perras (Grace) and Maryann Curmi (Gloria) are compelling to watch in their energetic verbal sparring.

Grace is illiterate and lives in a primitive Virginia farmhouse with a wood stove and a water pump in the kitchen. She has a strong Christian faith that helped her survive the deaths of her husband and all five of her sons.

Gloria is a Harvard-educated MBA who made big money in New York as a partner in a consulting firm. She is an atheist who has been deeply depressed since the death of her young son in a car accident.

It isn't long before Grace is comforting Gloria as much as the reverse.

The play starts slowly, with a bit too much explanation about hospice, but gets more engaging as the women let down their guards. Things get even more interesting when Gloria reveals her own painful past.

But Grace is so strong that it's a weakness in the play. It's hard for us to believe that Grace is really going to die soon. Also, both actresses sometimes have a hard time showing raw emotions — their sadness can seem forced.

Still, the play is a good choice for Stage 3 because it deals with a topic we all will have to face sooner or later. Anyone who has sat at someone's deathbed can relate to the feelings expressed on stage.

There's enough humor mixed in throughout to lighten the play's heavy material, as Gloria attempts to manage farmhouse life, with comical results.

Ron Cotnam is responsible for the impressively detailed farmhouse set, which includes a bedroom, kitchen, vintage trunk and old photos. Light recorded country music played between scenes helps set the right atmosphere.

Despite its dark subject matter, "Grace and Glorie" manages to end with an uplifting tone about the value of every life.

For more on the region's arts scene, read thehive.modbee.com/artsbeat or www.twitter.com/lisamillegan.