The opening night of Jar the Floor at Arkansas Repertory Theatre was poignant and funny -- until the last act, when the cast of five laid it all out on the stage in a spinning wheel of blame and shame.
The cast includes grandmother, "MaDear," played by CeCelia Antoinette; a mother, "Lola," played by Joy Lynn Jacobs; a daughter ("MayDee," played by Shannon Lamb; a granddaughter, "Vennie," played by Maya Jackson; and the daughter's one-breasted companion, "Raisa," played by Erikka Walsh.
Set in the mid '90s in MayDee's home in a middle-class suburb south of Chicago, the show portrays the complicated relationships and betrayals among the family members, culminating in a cry fest. The action centers on the widowed MaDear's 90th birthday. Casting is spot-on and the acting tremendous. MaDear's birthday attire -- a T-shirt emblazoned with "90 and still kickin'," was made even funnier as she sped around the stage in an electric wheelchair.
One of sweet Raisa's more memorable lines: "Love looks forward, hate looks back, but family has eyes all over its head."
After the show, patrons and supporters were treated to a champagne reception with a hamburger bar, bite-size cheesecakes and tiny banana pudding cups.
Jar the Floor, the second to last of The Rep's 2016-2017 season, runs through Easter, April 16.
High Profile on 04/09/2017