STAGE REVIEW : Heartbreak Behind the Patriotism in ‘Parade’

No Minivers these, the five Canadian heroines of John Murrell’s World War II home-front chronicle “Waiting for the Parade.” They’re flesh-and-blood ladies, each torn apart in her own way by her separation from her man. And they poignantly bring home the aura and emotions of that last glamorous war. Murrell’s play, one of the most successful of contemporary Canadian plays, asks only for a kindly glance at these women, and a little understanding. That simplicity is its strong point.

An accomplished company brings the quintet to life with insight into their individual quirks and quandaries in this bare-bones production by the Co-Op at Pacific Theatre Ensemble. Melissa Hoffman, Linda Lodge, Peg Shirley, Martha Hackett and Betsy K. Berenson inhabit the snapshot scenes and brief monologues of Murrell’s piece with the same honesty and attention to period that distinguish Berenson’s costumes and the sound design by Michael Killen.

In spite of this group’s skill at re-creating the past, the evening seems longer than it is in the staging of Stephen Robertson, whose guidance works well within the scenes, but who uncomfortably utilizes an awkward, uncredited set. Simple black drapes would have allowed quicker and smoother entrances and exits and done away with long pauses between Murrell’s short cinematic scenes.

Home-side dalliances, a mother’s lonely belief that her sons will never return, mistrust of those who didn’t go, all of the heartbreak behind the patriotism lives in lightning flashes. “Waiting for the Parade” isn’t a linear play and begs for inventive staging.

So do the performances in this production. This parade’s heart beats firmly but too slowly.

At 705 1/2 Venice Blvd., Venice, through Sunday, 8 p.m. Tickets: $7.50; (213) 654-6835.