by Barry Willis *

Theatergoers have a few more days to see CenterREP’s bold reimagining of the Tennessee Williams classic The Glass Menagerie. Performed by an all-Equity cast on a shabby-elegant multi-tiered set by Yi-Chien Lee, the show closes Sunday September 27 at Walnut Creek’s Lesher Center for the Arts.

Directed by Matt M. Morrow (assisted by Miller Libertore), this Menagerie adheres closely to Williams’ elegant script, an examination of the life of the Wingfield family living in reduced circumstances in a seedy part of St. Louis in the wake of World War II. Immersive projections by Yuki Izumihara take the presentation into a realm never explored in other productions, yet the tale remains properly rooted in the mid-century.

Cody Sloan stars as the disaffected aspiring writer Tom Wingfield, also the story’s narrator. Bay Area theater veteran Nancy Carlin puts in an astoundingly over-the-top performance as Tom’s delusional manipulative mother Amanda, a former debutante of the Mississippi Delta.

Amanda’s never let go of the glory days of her youth and can’t stop harping about them to Tom and his shy awkward sister Laura (Alanna Darby). She also can’t stop haranguing Tom about his seemingly pointless pursuit of writing, nor can she get off Laura’s back about her failure to attend typing class at the local business school. The Wingfields are stuck in an intractably deep rut, one made deeper by the absence of the family patriarch who one day vanished and never returned.

There are multiple strong emotional undercurrents in this production, evocatively wrought by the four talented performers. Mother, son, and daughter bask in a moment of hope when Tom invites workmate Jim O’Connor (Rob Fagin) home for dinner and to meet his sister. It’s especially uplifting for Amanda, who unwisely splurges on a bit of cheap extravagance to impress Laura’s first and possibly only “gentleman caller.”

And the evening appears promising as Jim and Laura get to know each other, until Jim suddenly remembers that he’s engaged to a woman named Betty and probably shouldn’t get involved with anyone else. It’s clear that he recognizes what a mess he’s stepped into with the Wingfields, but it’s not clear whether he invents Betty on the fly or if he was momentarily distracted by Laura. That’s the beauty and pathos of Williams’ script, heartrendingly brought to life in this sumptuous production..

Playing through September 27, 2026 in the Margaret Lesher Theatre at Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Drive, Walnut Creek.

Click HERE for more information and tickets.

Photos by Kevin Berne

Barry Willis is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association and past president of the SF Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle. Contact: barry.m.willis@gmail.com