Seal Songs, two well-written one acts involving seals by Jennifer Fell Hayes, directed by Kathy Gail MacGowan, gives us some interesting contrasts in style. The first, "Seal Songs," is a sweet, charming, realistic, almost romantic piece about two middle-aged singles in England, both of whom have suffered losses: a spinster who loves to watch seals and a handyman, who tiptoe around full communication. It's played in contrasting modes: Richard Kent Green inhabits the character of the shy workman who loves music - he IS the man. Katie Atcheson SHOWS the character and her emotions. I found the contrast jarring at first but accepted it and enjoyed the play.
The second play, "Overboard," has a totally different tone: it's a fun trip into a fantasy about a man who pulls a Selkie, a seal who transforms into a woman, out of the sea. Here, Atcheson, in the unreality of the character, becomes real, and seems to live the part of the woman experimenting with having legs and with kissing a man for the first time. Green is totally convincing in his characterization, and he and Atcheson work well together in this enjoyable comedy.
