BONNIE AND CLAIRE

A Tender New Comedy by Bo Wilson

A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis

At: Hanover Tavern, 13181 Hanover  Courthouse Rd, Hanover, VA 2309

Performances: May 13 – June 12, 2022

Ticket Prices: $48 (subject to change during the run)

Info: (804) 282-2620 or www.virginiarep.org

Richmond-based playwright Bo Wilson’s new play, Bonnie and Claire, is not only humorous, but also a gentle treatment of aging and the often unexpected and unintentional toll it takes on those we love. Two extra years in the making – due to that pesky little pandemic – Bonnie and Claire made its debut on Virginia Repertory Theatre’s Hanover Tavern stage May 13. Well worth the wait, it landed exactly right and hit all the feels.

Bonnie (Melissa Johnston Price) and Claire (Jan Guarino) are two sisters who have been estranged for decades, but life’s circumstances and advancing age have brought them together in  Bonnie’s small town home. The reunion is rocky, but their niece, Zoe (Sydnee S. Graves) is there to ease the transition – and drive the two wherever they need to go. At the beginning of the play, Zoe is chauffeuring Bonnie who is hobbled by crutches after, we soon learn, a car accident. With each subsequent scene, Bonnie appears with a new injury – an arm sling, a neck brace. All are due to accidents in which she was driving – such as driving into a 7-11 – and none of them were her fault. According to her.

Wilson and his phenomenal cast have impressively balanced the element humor with the reality that comes with aging and the declining ability to do the things we love, the things that give us our freedom and independence. It is understandable that Bonnie is cranky and even appears somewhat ungrateful that she has to rely on her niece Zoe, and at first Zoe is caring, polite, and deferential. But as the accidents escalate over the nearly ten years this play encapsulates (from 1990 to 1999) the burden of being a care-giver to Bonnie and mediator between the two sisters, who have vastly different worldviews, begins to wear on Zoe, who is trying to start a new business and a new relationship.

ADVISORY: Skip the next paragraph if you plan to see the show and want to be surprised!

Claire, who has worked as an actress for decades, lived in the city and never learned to drive. Of the three, she initially seems flighty and superficial, and her character takes the longest to develop, but gradually we see the chasm close between the two sisters. Bonnie outwardly remains her crotchety old self, but underneath the gruffness even she has some soft edges and begins to smile and even laugh a bit as the years pass and the two sisters are drawn together by past memories and the reality of the present and future challenges. The greatest change is seen in Zoe, whose apprenticeship as a caregiver and relationship with her aunts helps her transition into adulthood. Zoe learns to draw boundaries, falls in love with her business partner (who happens to be another woman), and by the final scene they are ready to start a family. So here we are privy to another dichotomy, another delicate balance, between growth and decline, between dependence and independence.

The entire play takes place in a car – first in Zoe’s fluffy ride and later in Bonnie’s old Buick. Kudos to Jacob Mishler’s sound design – every time a door was closed, an ignition was started, or any other vehicle related sound was required, it happened – perfectly timed and at an appropriate volume. Every. Single. Time. (Sometimes it’s the little things that make a big difference.) Dr. Jan Powell’s direction infused Bonnie and Claire with a satisfyingly rhythmic ebb and flow of humor and compassion. The ensemble – veteran Melissa Johnston Price with her wide range and droll humor; Jan Guarino, who directed VirginiaRep’s first show after the pandemic shutdown, Barefoot in the Park, and the wife of the playwright, Bo Wilson; and Sydnee S. Graves, who is making her Hanover Tavern debut – appeared to be a tight-knit unit even on opening night, so one can only expect their chemistry to increase throughout the run, which concludes June 12.

ADVISORY: Another possible spoiler!

After Zoe puts her foot down, takes away Bonnie’s car key, and pretty much orders her two elderly aunts to play nice and behave, the two giddily decide to go for a short ride. Bonnie had a spare key! Now, mind you, Bonnie’s license has been revoked and Claire hasn’t been behind the wheel of a car since she was about fifteen with a learner’s permit! Of course their planned outing to get ice cream ends with them getting lost and Zoe has to come rescue them.

Hijinks and shenanigans abound – and many of us can relate to the family dynamics – all of which makes Bonnie and Claire a marvelous theater experience that I highly recommend.

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Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County.

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BONNIE AND CLAIRE

By Bo Wilson

Directed by Jan Powell

Cast

Bonnie ………………..       Melissa Johnston Price

Claire …………………         Jan Guarino

Zoe ……………………         Sydnee Graves

Design Team

Scenic Design  …….….         Terrie Powers

Costume Design ……..        Marcia Miller Hailey

Lighting Design ………        Matt Landwehr

Sound and Projection Design … Jacob Mishler

Stage Management ……     Joe Pabst

Ticket Information

Box Office: 804-282-2620

or http://www.virginiarep.org

Tickets prices start from $48

Discounted Group Rates and Rush tickets available.

Run Time

The show runs 90 minutes with no intermission

Photo Credits: Aaron Sutten