Faye Medwick (Michelle DeFrancesco) is married and in search of an affair. Leo Schneider (Sven Salumaa) is a player and will play any woman that comes near him. Jennie Malone (Amy Fritsche) finally has gotten a divorce and has absolutely no interest in men. George Schneider (Howard Bickle, Jr.) recently lost his wife and is still in mourning. What do these four people have in common?
They are characters in Neil Simon's 1977 mega-hit Chapter Two. Written after his wife died, this is the most autobiographical of his plays, one of his best, and, easily one of his most dramatic. His protagonist, George, is about to enter the dating scene. Brother Leo is of mixed feelings, giving him even more mixed advice.
It is Leo and a friend, Faye, who suggest Jennie as a date, although George has no desire to meet this woman, and she feels much the same way. Then a mistaken phone call turns into a series of phone calls. The first act proceeds with Simon's wonderful word play as love blossoms.
The second act brings in the obligatory conflict. Will George ever get over the death of his first wife? Will these feelings bear on his long-term relationship with Jennie? Meanwhile, Faye and Leo decide to have a bit of a romance. Thus builds a second layer of love and conflict.
Director Craig Huisenga has developed a high level of believability here. DeFrancesco has a twinkle in her eye that tells us there's more to her character than just a friendship with Jennie. Salumaa plays George's straight-laced brother, only to reveal his more adventurous ways with Faye in Jennie's apartment.
Simon places the action in both George's and Jennie's New York City apartments, which ping pong from one to the other in varying-length scenes. There is almost a rhythm as the complexities develop in each location. Faye and Leo have a tryst in Jennies' apartment. Jennie moves in with George. Telephones are constantly ringing in either apartment. It all makes for a very short two and a half hours.
Set designer Brian Redfern and the construction crew built move-in-ready apartments in colorful décor. Each apartment reflects its resident. Jennie has books and plants, while George's walls are graced with photos of his first wife. Mitchell Simkovski's lighting plot is crisp and clean. Steve Murdock's sound design either announces or underscores each move from one apartment to the other.
Chapter Two gets more serious in Act II as relationships are seriously defined. The interplay between Bickle and Fritsche is intense as the lovers cross over to become a permanent couple. Their emotional rollercoaster is erratic, yet rational, and quite understandable.
