Theater Review: Visiting Mr. Green

Presented by Theater group Galleon
Review written October 18, 2024

It’s a bit of a mystery why Visiting Mr. Green It appears to have only been performed once before in South Australia – early this century it was performed by the St Jude’s Players. Jeff Baron’s play is a beautifully written, slightly autobiographical drama that explores loneliness, aging, religion (Judaism in this case) and prejudice/persecution. Even though it sounds heavy, there is a lot of humor in it and it is still very relevant today.

Jewish octogenarian Mr. Green (Andrew Horwood) lives alone in his New York apartment until Ross Gardiner (Andrew Clarke) appears on his doorstep one Thursday at 7 p.m. The court orders Ross to community service every Thursday at 7:00 pm for nearly running over Mr. Green. It’s a real “odd couple” experience at first. Ross doesn’t want to be there, but he has to, and Mr. Green doesn’t want him to be there, but he has to have him. They both learn a lot about each other and themselves.

It’s never easy to make a two-hander without turning it into fluff, but Vicky Horwood gives both actors enough “real” things to do to make a very watchable play. Thanks to the script, direction and acting, the viewer is captured from the very beginning and holds his attention until the very end. All this takes place in a very believable ordinary New York apartment, designed by Kim Clayton, Horwood and Vivien Rae and well decorated by Elaine Latcham and Mary Cummins (there’s even a real menorah in the background!).

It’s hard to separate the performances of the two Andrews (Horwood and Clarke), they are both excellent. Horwood impresses with his authentic American Jewish accent and is completely believable as the octogenarian Jew, his hand constantly twitching and shuffling oddly with every movement – neither of which is an exaggeration. Clark has the audience at his fingertips the moment he first walks through the front door. His cuteness just shines and is contagious to us (even to Mr. Green eventually). While both performances are fine, Clarke has a very moving monologue in the second act that is delivered at such just the right pitch that it is simply stunning. Both actors paint beautiful pictures for the audience, and they come alive vividly in our minds.

Visiting Mr. Green This is a superb play, well staged and featuring fine, exceptional performances from two of Adelaide Community Theatre’s finest actors.

User verified Brian Godfrey

Venue: Domain Theatre, Marion Cultural Center
Season: Until October 26, 2024
Duration: Approximately 2 hours (including 20 minute break)
Tickets: US$25–28
Reservations: https://www.galleon.org.au/html/bookings.html