THEATER REVIEWS : 2 Productions Open Window on American South in 1930s, ‘40s : Both ‘Mockingbird’ and ‘Glass Menagerie’ are well-executed by local theater groups and still deliver powerful messages.

Local theater groups are currently presenting two well-known looks at the American South during the first half of this century. Themes and ideas presented in both continue to resonate today, making “To Kill a Mockingbird,” at the Santa Paula Theatre Center, and “The Glass Menagerie,” at Moorpark College, far more than museum pieces.

Tom Robinson, a black man, stands accused of raping a white woman in a small Alabama town in the mid-1930s. Asked by the judge to defend Robinson, attorney Atticus Finch is convinced from the start that he’ll lose the case; he also stands to lose the esteem of his fellow white townspeople, subject to the prejudices of the day. More important to Finch, though, are the respect of his two young children and his own need to uphold the tenets of the American legal system.

Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 1960 novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” was adapted by author Horton Foote into a successful 1962 film starring Gregory Peck; both Foote and Peck won Academy Awards for their efforts.

The late Christopher Sergel’s stage adaptation of Lee’s novel has until recently remained primarily the domain of high school and college productions. But that’s all changed. According to a poll by American Theatre magazine, “To Kill a Mockingbird” is the third most-produced play in this country’s regional theaters this year, the top two being “Keely and Du,” a topical drama by Jane Martin and “Dancing at Lughnasa,” Brian Friel’s misty piece of Ireland.

“To Kill a Mockingbird” also turns out to be popular with audiences across the county. The Santa Paula Theater Center’s fine production, which opened last weekend under Michael Sollazzo’s direction, should attract crowds. (The Santa Paulans will be performing “Lughnasa” later this year; so far, no local productions of “Keely and Du” have been announced).

“To Kill a Mockingbird” is told through the eyes of attorney Finch’s young daughter, Scout, who experiences the trial with her brother, Jem, and their friend, Dill.

A large cast and Sollazzo’s atmospheric stage set largely compensate for Sergel’s somewhat weak construction, in which too much exposition is related through prerecorded flashback narration by Scout as an adult. (The play’s publishers offer an alternate version, in which the narration is supplied onstage by a neighbor.)

Frank Ellis plays Atticus Finch with steely resolve; if you didn’t know that Gregory Peck had originated the role, you still might be able to tell, just from watching Ellis’ performance--which is not to slight the actor, but to note how much Peck has defined the role.

The young actors--Aurora-Fleur Gaines as Scout, Ryan Geoffrey Webb as Jem and Terin Jackson as Dill--are terrific, in most ways as able as the adults in the show. There’s a slight problem in that their young voices tend to get mushy, particularly when affecting Southern accents. Still, it’s pretty easy to understand what’s going on, and the kids have strong and assured presence.

Other adults in prominent roles include Glenn J. Campbell as the town’s sympathetic sheriff, Lemuel L. Hill as Tom Robinson, Cheryl “Cookie” Cole as the Finches’ housekeeper, Carolejo Adams as an old biddy who lives next door to the Finches, director-stage designer Sollazzo as the victim’s practically foaming-at-the-mouth father, Deborah Probe as the victim, Karl Mickelson as the prosecutor, Robert Munns as the judge, and Linda Lacey, Carla A. Boykin, Braden McKinley, and Kathryn Dippong as townspeople. Jeff G. Rack appears both as Nathan Radley--the meanest man in town--and his mysterious son, Boo.

The offstage narration is supplied, most capably, by Santa Barbara radio personality Jennifer Quinlan.

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Tennessee Williams’ semi-autobiographical “The Glass Menagerie” dates to the ‘40s, where it caused a sensation in its 1945 Broadway debut and established the author as one of America’s greatest--and most distinctively American--playwrights. A Broadway revival opened last fall, and (closer to home) a top-notch Moorpark College presentation, directed by Les Weider, closes its two-week run Saturday night.

Set in St. Louis circa 1940, “The Glass Menagerie” illustrates a critical juncture in the life of Williams-surrogate Tom Windfield and his family of dreamers. Living at home with his overbearing mother and withdrawn sister, Tom works in a shoe warehouse and spends as much time as he can at the movies, his only means of escape. But he aspires to be a poet, and to join the Merchant Marine as a way of expanding his limited horizons.

Mother Amanda and sister Laura both suffer emotional problems. Amanda lives in a glorious past that’s probably more imagination than reality, and Laura, crippled by childhood illness, spends virtually all of her time spinning old records on the family Victrola and playing with her collection of glass animals.

This Laura limps only slightly; the disability has been more pronounced in other productions. Whether the long-ago departure of Tom and Laura’s father (“a telephone man who fell in love with long distance”) was the cause or effect of this dysfunctional crew isn’t established.

Amanda, a stage mother without a stage, urges Tom to bring home a friend, any friend, from work as a potential “gentleman caller” for shy Laura. He eventually follows through, inviting the ambitious Jim home for dinner, without realizing that Laura harbors a crush on him dating back to their high school days. Complications ensue.

Director Weider and his cast bring out the considerable comedy in “Menagerie,” without lessening the pathos that runs throughout. Nisan Cerami’s Amanda is bubbling with personality; perhaps she was the young socialite back home in Mississippi that she claims to have been (a bit of makeup would help Cerami look closer to Amanda’s age, however).

Much of Laura’s part is virtually pantomime, which Kimberly Paine handles with great effect, and Jeff Shea is believable as a former high school jock now aimed at the fast track in business. Steve Connell has a tough job as Tom, both the callow aspiring artist and (as the narrator) a reflective older man. He’s more impressive, probably, as the young Tom, if only because he plays the adult a bit too close to a Tom Waits-like alley rat.

Of special note is the use of music in this production, ranging from recordings of big-band hits from the period through some live atmospheric unaccompanied saxophone playing by Gordon Kurowski.

Details

“To Kill a Mockingbird.”

* WHEN: Thursday through Saturday evenings at 8; Sunday afternoons at 2:30, through April 2.

* WHERE: Santa Paula Theater Center, 125 S. Seventh Street.

* HOW MUCH: $12.50, students and seniors $10.

* FYI: Special student group rates for 20 or more; some post-play discussion periods with the cast may be scheduled. Call for further information. Season tickets also available.

* CALL: 525-4645.

“The Glass Menagerie”

* WHEN: Tonight at 7; Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m.

* WHERE: Forum Theater, Moorpark College, 7075 Campus Road, Moorpark.

* HOW MUCH: $7; $5 staff, students and seniors.

* CALL: For reservations or further information, 378-1468.