As a romantic melodrama involving two middle-aged. widowed high school teachers, Maytag Virgin certainly departs from a usual boy-meets-girl routine. Using a clothes dryer and a statue of Mary, Mother of Jesus, to launch into the couple’s differences upon meeting is novel. So is how the question is posed as to whether or not they’ll adapt to living next to each other. Author Audrey Cefaly does, though, give them a readily understood affinity: both are Southerners.
Two onstage neighboring house fronts facing forward could not be more unalike. Her is flower-bedecked, well lit, cheerily painted and furnished. Granted that he’s just moved in at the play’s start, his Maytag is not only oddly next to his front door, but Mary’s statue is one of the first furnishings to be out of one of the boxes lying all around.
Rachel Moulton as Elizabeth—always shortened to the telling Lizzy—dominates the scene, bringing a pie to welcome Blake Price’s Jack, who’s unpacking in businesslike fashion. She, though on a leave of absence from school, has found out a lot about him. But Lizzy obviously wants to know more, like how he’ll deal with the condition of his house. “I like a challenge”—his reply—will prove to be prophetic.
When they open a big pack Jack’s found in a crawl space, out come letters, including five never opened. Later, after Lizzy reads them, she talks to Jack about them and learns of like feelings between him, her, and the girl writer especially. By Christmas, Lizzy is speaking about religion, decrying “sex talk,” and upset about Jack’s telling her to loosen up—so much so that she’s thinking of building a fence between them. But Christmas itself, with its faculty party, shared memories, and finally a storm (wonderfully arranged by FST’s tech designers), changes things.
Act II is full of exchanges about the influence of the past, present concerns, and how each thinks about the future. Rachel Moulton skillfully handles all of Lizzy’s problems with these. For most of the time, she talks at, rather than shares with, Price’s patient Jack. That will change…but when and how will she keep him and the audience attentive? There’s also suspense about how the Maytag and the Virgin’s statue will figure in the conclusion.
Director Kate Alexander artfully gets her actors to wring the truth out of the characters’ complete situations and feelings. Her well-known expertise in working with actresses (Alexander being famed as among the best) comes through in Moulton’s performance, her latest in regular conjunction with Alexander. Still, Blake Price deserves credit for conveying his character’s backgrounds, convictions, and decisions in a more simply written role. He also exemplifies Alexander’s proven ability to put male actors at ease.
Pedro L. Guevara’s set evolves to depict the characters’ activity in it. Andrew Gray’s lighting and Thom Korp’s sound designs have continual impact. Costuming by Taylor Floyd reflects Lizzy and Jack’s growing interest in what each wears in the other’s presence and the effects. In Lizzy’s case, changes in dress abound.
Anxiousness over how Lizzy and Jack’s relationship will end up is less important than why. Revelation of that attests to playwright Audrey Cefaly’s ability to keep an audience listening, looking, and pretty much liking the play’s serious end.
