It’s difficult to re-enact in a community theater a story that’s familiar to most people because of an iconic film like “Harvey.” But Belle Theatre in the Cape refuses to shy away from this daunting task. It’s a good thing, too. During the era of polarization, Belle Theatre’s production reminds us of the power of kindness and empathy.
The catalyst for this realization is Elwood P. Dowd. He’s played by Louis Monaco. No one will ever mistake Monaco for Jimmy Stewart, but he plays the part with such humility, kindness and empathy that audiences will hardly notice.
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As a reminder, the play’s namesake is a 6-foot-1 white rabbit who can stop clocks and foretell the future. In this scene, Dowd explains to a psychiatrist named Sanderson just how the rabbit got his name.
“Finally I said to him I said, ‘You know, you have the advantage on me, mister. You know my name, but I don’t know yours.’ And right back at me he said, ‘Well, what name do you like?’ And I didn’t hesitate a minute. ‘Harvey. Harvey has always been my favorite name.’ So I said, ‘Harvey,’ and this is the interesting part of the whole thing. He looked right back at me and he said, ‘Well, what a coincidence. My name happens to be Harvey.’”
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Harvey is often described as invisible, but that’s not entirely true. Elwood’s sister, Veta, and the head of the sanatorium, Dr. Chumley, can both see Harvey, which they find unsettling because it’s just not normal.
Playwright Mary Chase doesn’t have a high opinion of normal. In this scene, a taxi driver by the name of Watson describes what Elwood will become after drinking the so-called Kool Aid.
“He’ll be a perfectly normal human being, and we all know what bastards they are.”
“Harvey” is onstage at The Belle Theatre through February 23.
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MORE INFORMATION:
“Harvey” is the story of a perfect gentleman, Elwood P. Dowd, and his best friend, Harvey -- a pooka, who is a six-foot one-and-a-half-inch tall rabbit who is invisible to most people. When Elwood begins introducing Harvey around town, his socially conscious sister, Veta Louise, and her social climbing daughter, Myrtle Mae, determine to commit Elwood to a sanitarium.
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However, the admitting doctor concludes that Veta is the one with the problem, and he commits her rather than Elwood.
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After the mistake is discovered, a frantic search begins for Elwood and the invisible pooka, which ends with Elwood appearing, voluntarily, at the sanitarium. In the end, however, Veta realizes that she loves her brother and his invisible best friend just as they are, and doesn’t want either of them to change.
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Mary Chase won the 1944 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for “Harvey.”
“Harvey” premiered on Broadway on November 1, 1944 at the 48th Street Theatre. It closed January 15, 1949 after 1,775 performances, making it the fifth longest-running Broadway show up to that point.
The book was adapted for film in 1950. Josephine Hull starred with Jimmy Stewart in the movie. Hull won an Academy Award for her performance.
Louis Monaco previously starred in the role of Barney Cashman in Belle Theatre’s production of Neil Simon’s "Last of the Red Hot Lovers." Prior credits include FBI Agent Frank for The Belle Theatre in "Unnecessary Farce," Uncle Billy and others in "It’s a Wonderful Life Radio Show" (Cultural Park Theater, 2021) and Keaton in "Small Planet "(Cultural Park Theater, 2021).
Kristen Wilson plays Veta Louise. She has extensive stage credits including, most recently, Jane in "Men Are Dogs" at Fort Myers Theatre, Truvee Jones in Fort Myers Theatre’s production of "Steel Magnolias," Mae Peterson in "Bye Bye Birdie" at Cultural Park Theatre, Mrs. White in "Clue on Stage" for Fort Myers Theatre, Lenny McGrath in "Crimes of the Heart" (Cultural Park Theatre) and Edith Frank in "The Diary of Anne Frank" (Fort Myers Theatre). Go here to see the rest of Kristen's acting and directing credits.
Peyton McCarthy plays Myrtle Mae. McCarthy's prior stage credits include Billie Dwyer in "Unnecessary Farce," Ruby Sue Bennett in "Four Old Broads" at Belle Theatre in the Cape, Daisy Buchanan for Fort Myers Theatre in "The Great Gatsby," Annelle in "Steel Magnolias," Dr. Harriman in "Mind Games," Mother in "Yellow Boat" and Siobhan in "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time."
Bradyn Parmelly plays Dr. Sanderson. His previous stage credits include Mark Cohen for The Belle Theatre in "Rent," the Baker in "Into the Woods" at Cultural Park Theatre (2024), Conrad Birdie in "Bye Bye Birdie" (2024), Ren McCormack in "Footloose" (2024), Pippin in "Pippin" (2023) and Danny Zuko in "Grease" (2023) at Cultural Park Theatre, as well as Grantaire in "Les Miserables" (2023) and Greg in "A Chorus Line" (2023) with Melody Lane Theatre. Other credits include Leon Czolgosz in "Assassins" (2021) and Seymour Krelborn in "Little Shop of Horrors" (2020).
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The rest of the cast includes Grace Koltz as Nurse Kelly, Elijah Grant as Judge Gaffney, Maliyah Mattis in multiple roles (Miss Chauvenet/Betty Chumley/Cabby) and DeVaughn Parris as Wilson. During the first week of performances, Ethan MacKay played the part of Dr. Chumley.
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.