A starker ‘Anne Frank’ opening at playhouse

Tom Titus

Most theatergoers are quite familiar with “The Diary of Anne Frank,”

the true-life account of a teenage Jewish girl hiding with her family

from the Nazis in 1942 Amsterdam. But the story unfolding at the

Costa Mesa Civic Playhouse this weekend is not the one you’re

accustomed to seeing.

The title’s the same, but the presentation is a recently adapted

version performed on Broadway with Natalie Portman and Linda Lavin.

And it has moved New York critics to superlatives such as “undeniably

moving” (New York Times) and “an extraordinary theatrical adventure”

(New York Post).

“‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ is a classic drama that illustrates the

determination of the human spirit to survive amid seemingly

insurmountable odds,” said Terra Taylor Knudson, director of the

Costa Mesa production.

“Through the conventions of light, sound and a simply dressed set,

the brightness of the characters, led by Anne, is pushed to the

forefront of the action, allowing room to fully demonstrate the power

of the human spirit as they cling to the essential element of hope,”

Knudson added.

It is the simplicity of the set that magnifies the effect of the

play on its audience, the director said.

“By placing characters in a blank environment, we allow them to be

stripped of the creature comforts that audiences of today take for

granted,” she said. “This, in addition to the use of light and

shadow, helps to underscore the reality of the claustrophobic

‘imprisonment’ in which the Frank family and friends lived.

“It is my hope that, by removing the conventions of a habitable

set, the audience will be afforded a sense of discord, unbalance and

awkwardness as they feel for the lack of privacy and dignity

experienced by the characters,” Knudson said.

“I also find the convention especially effective for staging

Anne’s diary entries, which traditionally are done in a blackout with

a voice-over,” she added. “By staging Anne to break the fourth wall

and step out of the action, the audience is once again brought into

the action rather than letting them observe passively.”

In the Costa Mesa production, being unveiled tonight for a

four-weekend engagement, the title role will be played by Alison

Axelrad, with Charlie Reeves and Sharryl Wynne cast as her parents.

Others in the cast include Melissa Scott, Michael Dale Brown,

Barbara Brown, John Schwendinger (to be replaced on the final weekend

by Jonathon Kolbush), Dave Redmond, Katherine Futterer and Sam

Younghans.

Performances will be given Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m.

and Sundays at 2 p.m. at the Civic Playhouse, 611 Hamilton St., Costa

Mesa. Reservations are being taken at (949) 650-5269.

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His reviews

appear Fridays.