Review: Stone Soup passes their driving test with flying colors with “How I Learned to Drive”.

Review: How I Learned to Drive by Paula Vogel. Directed by John Vreeke. With Kelli Mohrbacher, Jaryl Draper, Maureen Miko, Zachariah Robinson, Jager Weatherby. At Stone Soup Theatre through February 27.

Top, clockwise: Zachariah Robinson, Jaryl Draper, Maureen Miko, Kelli Mohrbacher in Stone Soup's "How I Learned to Drive" by Paula Vogel.

Paula Vogel’s How I Learned to Drive, the Pulitzer Prize winning play currently on the boards at Stone Soup Theatre, is a “grown up” play in every sense of the word. The plot centers on “Li’l Bit” a young woman who recalls her childhood/teenaged years growing up in rural Maryland in the 1960’s and 70’s in a family that defines dysfunctional but specifically recounts her complicated relationship with Uncle Peck, the uncle by marriage who taught her how to drive. Uncle Peck is also a serial pedophile (of both sexes) but his feelings for Li’l Bit develop beyond just sex. Ms Vogel’s masterful work not only deals with these very adult issues, but does so in a complex and dramatically challenging way. The play features just the two main characters and a cast of three “Greek chorus” members who play all the secondary roles, and a complicated format of flashbacks and monologues told out of chronological order. “Drive” demands a talented and experienced cast and crew to successfully pull off, and Stone Soup Theatre, the small theater company on Stone Way between Wallingford and Fremont, delivers the goods with a passionately directed, acted and designed production that proves that small theaters can achieve big results when they have the talent and courage to attempt challenging pieces of theater. This production of How I Learned to Drive is well worth taking the time to see.

Chief among the pleasures of this production is John Vreeke’s direction. Stone Soup is a very small theater space but it’s limitations are embraced by Mr Vreeke who keeps the staging simple while maintaining visual interest. At more than one point in the show, the actual door to the theater building is used as an exit/entrance point for characters and every inch of the playing space is utilized. Bobbi Kolpakas’ scenic design is simple, consisting of a raised platform on wheels primarily used as the car in which Li’l Bit learns to drive, but it also gets used as a table and a bed. A vague representation of a road map/directional symbols painted on floor and the back wall are the only nods to the driving theme present in the show; other productions tend to go overboard with the driving theme, so it’s nice to see it underplayed; the text and play title make it very clear, what this play is about. We don’t need it hit over our head, and Ms Kolpakas design gets the job done. Costume, lighting and sound designs were also kept simple, but professionally executed.

But, the cast is the primary standout in “Drive” and all five actors do exemplary work. The three chorus members: Maureen Miko playing the older female roles; Zachariah Robinson as the other men in the cast and Jager Weatherby playing a variety of characters including a younger version of Li’l Bit at one point, do fine ensemble work managing to delineate each individual character but maintaining a unity at all times with the other characters and the mood of the piece. It’s actually very tough to pull off ensemble roles; it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle, or to overplay certain characters, but all three actors know when it’s appropriate to be larger in life in certain roles, (Li’l Bit’s aged and very sexually inappropriate grand parents for example) and to hold back in others, (Uncle Peck’s long suffering wife or a suspicious waiter). Excellent work from all three actors.

However, How I Learned to Drive is, at heart, a two hander, focusing on the main character of Li’l Bit and her problematic relative, Uncle Peck and the two actors cast in these roles do an outstanding job and give powerful performances. Kelli Mohrbacher’s slightly gawky frame and cracking voice enhance her Li’l Bit with pathos and meaning…she’s like a broken puppet who can’t quite be repaired. Li’l Bit isn’t always a likable character; she at times, uses her Uncle Peck as much as he (ab)uses her and Ms Mohrbacher isn’t afraid to play those uglier sides of her personality which only enhances the moments when the character is vulnerable and preyed upon. It’s a tough, frequently very funny performance, but here’s always a hint of steel in it, and Ms Mohrbacher does an excellent job with it.

She’s matched, and sometimes surpassed, despite her skill, with the “where did this actor come from?” work from Jaryl Draper as Uncle Peck. I have not encountered this actor’s work before but he’s now moved to my “Ones to Watch For” list. Mr Draper gives an astounding performance as a man you ought to hate, but instead, end up pitying. Uncle Peck is a charming but wounded man, hounded by his own various demons, and a serial pedophile but Ms Vogel’s strong writing and Mr Draper’s equally strong acting, make the character real and complicated and touching and terrifying in equal measure. The fact that Uncle Peck is, on the surface, a “nice” guy; considerate, courteous and intelligent instead of the usual pedophile stereotype of a leering, ignorant, and obviously perverted monster, only makes the character more believable and all the more chilling. Mr Draper’s subtle performance never goes off the rails; it’s nuanced, natural but very precise. His most searing moment is a monologue in the middle of the play, where Uncle Peck recounts another moment when he seduced a young boy while on a fishing trip. The actions of the character are horrific, and Uncle Peck knows it, and Mr Draper manages to play both that realization and the joy of the seduction, carefully layering and mixing those mixed emotions in a haunting and complex performance. It’s superb acting from a gifted actor and Mr Draper’s performance alone, is worth the price of admission.

Stone Soup’s How I Learned to Drive is highly recommended and don’t dally in booking your tickets. It’s a small space and fills up quickly.