Jeff Daniels’ “Norma & Wanda” Takes Comedy to an All-Time High

Photo: (Foreground) Kristin Shields & Jamie Elvey (Background) Henri Franklin & Kate Thomsen. Photo by Sean Carter Photography

The Purple Rose Theatre raised the curtain on its 35^th season with a remake of Jeff Daniels’ original comedy Norma & Wanda, directed by Rhiannon Ragland. It was clear from the start that both Daniels and Ragland have reached comedic genius status.

Norma & Wanda is a well-constructed farce. A farce with a dark undercurrent. Funny dialogue is wrapped around hilarious staging and physical antics. Daniels and Ragland find the laughs and turn the actors loose to create some magic on the stage.

But, as the plot unfolds, it reveals a dark truth that can exist in everyone. At some point, anyone can be driven to do the unthinkable.

Norma & Wanda, initially produced in 2005, features two actresses, Kristen Shields as Norma Randolph and Jamie Elvey as Wanda Dembrowski. The two are sisters who couldn’t be more different. Still, they are sisters. Norma, a happily married woman, is getting ready for Christmas, baking peanut-butter balls and singing Christmas carols.

Wanda is a woman who asks for what she wants.

Wanda appears, uninvited, using Norma’s house to meet an old boyfriend. The first fifteen minutes see Wanda stomping around Norma’s house, raging about being stood up. She expects a sister to be understanding in her quest for retribution. During the rant, Wanda’s description of spaghetti sauce is a moment not soon forgotten.

Listening, Norma is running around her home, hanging Christmas decorations. Attentive, yet distracted. But Norma’s world is about to change.

Like the ghosts of Christmas, one by one, people appear at her door. Mary Sue Thornberry, played by Kate Thomsen, drops by to help bake cookies. Then, a former high school boyfriend, Paulie Perkins, played by Henri Franklin, shows up to talk with Wanda.

Norma, subtly and then not so subtly, tries to get rid of them all. Things become complicated with a vintage Daniels’ plot twist. As Paulie and Wanda talk, things quickly go off the rails. For emphasis, Paulie’s conversation becomes very graphic. Slowly, the ladies’ thinking begins to change. So does their evening. And only Jeff Daniels can make panic and chaos look so fun.

Matters become more dramatic when Norma’s husband, Mel, played by Matt Bogart, the local bailiff, walks in on the group in a compromising position with Paulie. When explanations fail, he decides to take matters into his own hands.

Daniels, along with Ragland, knows how to end a play. There is a dramatic twist that leads to an interesting ending. The ending is best described by a line from the script, which reads, “It isn’t real, but it’s big.” Ragland ends this play similarly. Not quite real but big. And it leaves people walking out laughing. And thinking.

After the show, Elvey was asked whether what the audience saw was Ragland or the actors. “It was both,” Elvey said. “Rhiannon has a keen sense for comedy, but she is also exceptionally good at getting actors to dig deeper or go where their instincts take them. This cast and crew have been so fun to work with. I love them all.”

I give the show an enthusiastic two thumbs up. If I had more thumbs, they would all be up.

Norma & Wanda runs now through Dec. 21^st. Tickets can be purchased online at www.purplerosetheatre.org or by calling (734) 433-7673. Tickets for matinee performances have been selling fast. Get your tickets soon.