KEY POINTS:
Family secrets and children's inability to see their parents as passionate people are at the heart of Three Days of Rain now playing at the Silo.
Beautifully written by Richard Greenberg, Three Days of Rain has the classic appeal of a romantic old movie. Sure the action is too symmetrical to be true to life and the dialogue is witty and lyrical in ways that no real person ever is but wouldn't it be nice if it was real for once.
The play starts with preparations for the reading of the will of Ned Janeway, a celebrated architect and man of few words, who is all but unknown to his two children Walker and Nan. They discuss their memories of him and their unstable mother who has been institutionalised. Joining them for the reading is Pip Wexler, their long-time friend and the son of their father's business partner.
At stake is the family fortune and Janeway House, a daring and much-celebrated icon of American design. Needless to say the will reading doesn't go as expected and the discovery of their father's journal adds further intrigue. But the real fun comes in the second act when we go back into the past, meet the parents in their youth and see how it all started.
Three Days of Rain is a slow burner and director Shane Bosher is to be commended for having faith in the piece and for realising it beautifully with his talented team of actors and designers.
Each performance is a study in contrasts with Eryn Wilson, Tandi Wright and Glen Drake rising to the challenge of playing both parent and offspring. Eryn Wilson is particularly impressive as the bratty son and visionary father and gives a sensitive portrayal of a stutterer.
Tandi Wright is great as the uptight Nan but even better as her wild mother, Lina, playing the Southern Belle with the right amount of spunk and no sign of any cliched histrionics. Rounding out the trio is Glen Drake, who proves his acting chops providing humour in the first act as Pip and drama in the second as his father Theo.
A play about people with impeccable taste demands a lot from the design team and they deliver perfectly. Their assured work is faultless with nothing out of place.
John Verryt's set has a fitting architectural simplicity and cleverly creates the suggestion of rooms and corridors where there are none. The most striking features are a mesmerising curtain of black lacquered beads and a wall of windows that drip with real rain.
Elizabeth Whiting's costumes are period perfect in both eras.
Three Days of Rain could have been another American talkfest but strong direction, endearing performances and faultless design make it a small but perfectly formed gem. The kind of theatre that makes you wish the real world was more like a play.
