Beast on the Moon — “Tribune: Well Worth the Trip”

The Chicago Tribune’s Kerry Reid has weighed in and as expected the reviews for Provision Theater’s “Beast on the Moon” are excellent:

‘Beast on the Moon’

A bittersweet, affecting and beautifully acted tale of immigrant life, Provision Theater’s production of Richard Kalinoski’s “Beast on the Moon” is well worth the trip to the Irish American Heritage Center. Set in Milwaukee during a span from the early 1920s to the mid-1930s, the story traces the troubled relationship between Aram Tomasian, a photographer, and his “picture bride,” Seta. Armenians who survived the Turkish genocide a few years earlier and now striving to have their own child, Seta and Aram have chosen very different ways of dealing with their lingering grief.

Tim Gregory gracefully directs their fumbling attempts to create a real marriage out of those differences. Tiffany Scott delivers one of the most effortlessly engaging and moving performances I’ve seen so far this year as Seta, and her shifts from a terrified bride to self-possessed young housewife unfold with subtle grace and poignant truthfulness. Levi Holloway captures the hollow-eyed grief and rage of Aram, a good man paralyzed by his past. Kalinoski’s decision to include a grownup narrator feels unnecessary to the insular world of the play, but this small distraction doesn’t detract from this charming and sometimes heartbreaking production.

Through April 29 at Irish American Heritage Center, 4626 N. Knox Ave (MAP)    Tickets are $25 at 773-506- 4429.