Review of Marin Theatre Company’s, ‘Mother of the Maid’, by Jane Anderson, directed by Jasson Minadakis
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Joan Arc, played by Rosie Hallett was the perfect complement to Sherman Fracher's Isabelle. A forthright daughter with a mind of her own, she caught the conviction, trepidation and singular determination of Joan perfectly. Scott Coopwood played Jacques Arc, Isabelle’s reserved and emotionally buttoned down husband and father to Joan, with quiet fortitude and contained energy. Brennan Pickman-Thoon played Joan’s brother with lively enthusiasm and introduced a sense of easy casualness into the way he claimed his sudden status as high ranking soldier and royal courtier through acting as Joan’s guardian. Robert Sicular, played Father Gilbert, the Priest, who first championed Joan, then later reneged on her, when the English accused her of heresy. He brought slightly condescending pedantry to his role with all the finesse of a deft politician on the make, but it was not played without an element of empathy, which brought nuance and dimension to the character. Liz Sklar played the Lady of the Court with a wonderful sense of innocent entitlement and quiet ambition. Her character indicated what women in the highest echelons of 15th century French society could aspire to, if they worked hard, and as such served to emphasize the astonishing achievements of Joan of Arc herself.
In a talk before the play, Jasson Minadakis, artistic director of Marin Theatre Company and also director of this play, discussed the production process and the obstacles endured while putting this performance together. The recent power outages inhibited rehearsals, and put the set build and lighting plans back a week, on what was already a tight pre-production schedule. If he hadn’t mentioned this I’d have never have guessed, but it made the results all the more remarkable. His direction was smooth and seamless, but he attributes the collaborative spirit of the cast and crew for pulling it all off. The other outstanding feature of this play, was the set, designed by Sean Fanning, which, in Jasson Minadakis’ words, is ‘a work of art’. The main feature is the medieval cathedral window, set within stone sculpted walls. Creative use of lighting gave it many moods and allowed it to be transformed into a dungeon as well. The Arc’s simple home was by default less spectacular but nevertheless visually impressive. Chris Houston’s unobtrusive score and Sarah Smith’s simple but lovely costumes, contributed to the authentic mood.
