The Color of Rose, written and
directed by Katherine Bates, relates the life of this steadfast woman who
lived 104 years, and not always under the best of circumstances. In an
unusual technique, Rose is performed with three women on stage, Shelby
Kocee as Young Rose, Lia Sargent as Middle Rose and Gloria Strook as Older Rose,
all three bringing Rose Kennedy to life in different phases of her years.,
not in monologues but interacting with one another.
The setting is in a lavishly
decorated hotel room where Older Rose is waiting to be interviewed. She is
reminiscing about the past, considering how she will respond to her
interviewer, how much she will truthfully reveal. As she looks back at her
life, the Young Rose and the Middle Rose respond to the incidents that
took place in their times, aiding her in what she should or should not
expose.
Rose Fitzgerald's marriage to Joe
Kennedy was a happy time, but her life was not to remain so. Joe was a
controlling husband, a womanizer, and an unethical business man who also
drank far too much. It is difficult to imagine a woman staying with such a
man, but in the days of old, Irish Catholic woman remained loyal to their
husbands and did not divorce. Therefore, she had to remain with the man
she chose to marry. Since she and Joe had nine children, she was content
to focus her life on the accomplishments of her family, remaining stoic
even as she knew of all of his affairs. He was a good provider and, as
Rose said, she was able to have fine clothes and jewelry and meet some of
the most important people in the world.
Rose Kennedy faced dire family
tragedies in her lifetime, and upon her death in 1995, had outlived five
of her nine children.
Katherine Bates has presented
Rose Kennedy's life in an excellent and well-written drama. All three
actresses, under her direction, do outstanding justice to her work.
The Color of Rose is premiering
at Theatre 40 at the Reuben Cordova Theatre, 241 Moreno Drive in Beverly
Hills. It plays Mondays Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 8 PM, through December
21, 2011 with one matinee on Sunday, December 11th, at 2 PM. For
reservations call (310) 264-3606 or go online at
www.theatre40.org.
Recommended.
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Photo: Ed Krieger
