STAGE REVIEW : ‘And a Nightingale Sang . . .’ Tells a Romantic Tale of World War II

C.P. Taylor’s “And a Nightingale Sang . . .” at the Grove Theatre Company is, more than anything else, about getting by under difficult circumstances.

Air raid sirens go off, gas masks are pulled from the pantry closet, khaki-clad soldiers enter lives, but the real impact of the war always seems only tangential. The struggle with Hitler, like the historic Churchill speeches that join scenes, is merely a moody backdrop for the romantic tale Taylor decides to tell.

Nothing wrong with that. Not every wartime story requires the flash of enemy fire or soldiers returning home in wheelchairs to have substance and soul. But “Nightingale,” especially under David Herman’s winsome direction, has a slight quality. Mum’s (Kay Berlet) palpitations in the bomb shelter, Da’s (Gary Bell) daft tension-easing piano recitals and youngest daughter Joyce’s (Katharine Mills) worries about her soldier-husband are satisfyingly human moments, but they don’t always add up to something more.

Still, there is much to admire in Taylor’s writing (and Herman’s approach) concerning Helen (Kathy Bell Denton) as she finds an unexpected bounty--and unexpected heartache--in the war. The oldest daughter, Helen has given up on love, but she finally finds it when the gentle, weak Norman (Lawrence Levy) earnestly woos her during his weekend furloughs.

Denton plays Helen with backbone but also an affecting self-effacement and sensitivity. You root for her. And, at least early on, you want to root for Levy’s Norman too. His apparent goodness appears to make them the ideal match.

Even when he turns out to be something more than what he let on, he’s hard to hate. Levy lets us know from the start that Norman is not the strongest man; he is liable to make mistakes.

There’s more than one romance here. Joyce and Eric (Bud Leslie) find love in a roundabout way, by getting married just as he goes to the war but not finding an emotional connection until armistice.

Since “Nightingale” depends more on its colorful characters than its thin plotting, the performances are very important. If we aren’t intrigued by all the nervous self-absorption filling up Christa Bartels’ homey set, forget it.

Bell keeps the nincompoop father from getting too overbearing and gives him a shade of the misunderstood poet. As the fatalist grandfather, Jack Byron knows what to do with some of Taylor’s wittiest lines. Mills and Leslie have some nice little scenes.

At the Gem Theatre, 12852 Main St., Garden Grove, Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. , Sundays at 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., through Nov. 5 . Tickets: $13-$17. (714) 636-7213.