Whoever said, great things come in small packages, knew a thing or two about quality. They must have also known about the Edgemar Center for the Arts. This deceptively spacious Santa Monica theatre can be found on Main Street, sharing the same space as Peet’s and the hopping Brick and Mortar restaurant. Now playing is The Rainbow Theatre Company’s rendition of The Rainmaker. The theatre company, partnered with Henry Jaglom, brings the story of a travelling conman, a rainmaker, to a thirsty town out west in 1937. Most of the action takes place in the Curry family home, with father H.C., and his adult children, Noah, Jim, and Lizzie. The Currys are suffering from a lack of water and faith in love. Noah doesn’t believe his brother Jim has found true love with the town jezebel, nor does he think his sister Lizzie will ever find a husband. Enter, Starbuck. A charismatic, fast-talking showboat with promises to create a storm of rain to relieve the drying land…for a price.
As the drought continues, the unrelenting heat intensifies hostility in the house. The whole town is literally sweating around the clock as the Costume Designer, Kelly Fluker, indicates with glycerin marked armpits and necklines, a.k.a. stage sweat. Oddly everyone in the town perspires in the exact same places – the only noticeable theatre secret that was visible. From the Curry family’s first breakfast to the closing scene, the costumes were authentic. The distressing of the mens’ jeans and boots communicated a sense of duty to the family and the hard work of farm living. And the once beautiful fabrics, faded into flowered day rags hung beautiful on Tanna Frederick, as Lizzie. Fluker created a rugged canvas with the men’s costumes for Lizzie’s dresses to frolic across. Her color arc, like an ombre painting, transitioned from a quiet and controlled frosty blue to vibrant red chiffon in her moment of self-realization that she is a woman to be loved.
To get tickets for The Rainmaker, go to http://www.edgemarcenter.org/
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