Sometimes you have to go back to move forward is an adage well suited to “The Trip to Bountiful,” Horton Foote’s American Masterpiece now at Lamb’s Players Theatre through March 1. My friend Carolyn and I had the opportunity to see it, and she was the perfect companion because she had seen it when the Lamb’s Players first produced it in 1991.
Proving that some stories stand the test of time, “The Trip to Bountiful” premiered in 1953 on television and then became a Broadway play later that year. Two additional movies were made of the story — in 1985 featuring Geraldine Page and in 2014 starring Cicely Tyson.
The two stars of the story are the sometimes gleeful, other times morose, mother Carrie Watts, played expertly by Deborah Gilmour Smyth, who played the other star of the show, the daughter-in-law Jessie Mae Watts in the 1991 production. This season’s Jessie is played to perfection by Kelsey Venter, who demonstrates her selfish, spunky personality throughout. Andrew Oswald portrays Ludie Watts, also known as Sonny, the son caught between his wife and mom. Lauren King Thompson plays the congenial bus mate and immediate friend to Carrie. The other talented cast members include Spencer Gilbert, who plays the ticket agent, and Lance Arthur Smith as the sheriff.
With a simplistic set, which allows the audience to use their imagination, the acting takes center stage in this enjoyable production which takes place in a Houston apartment in 1940. Ludie and Jessie have no children after 15 years of marriage, and Carrie lives with them, cooking and taking care of the house.
Drinking Coca-Cola and going to the beauty parlor are the frivolous Jessie’s pastimes, and she is quick to complain about her hymn-singing mother-in-law who rushes around the apartment. Ludie’s efforts to mediate don’t come to fruition until after Carrie has snuck off to the Gulf Coast of Bountiful, where she grew up. The town is not what she remembers, and after a few kerfuffles, Carrie arrives at her rundown, but still beautiful to her homestead. She exclaims “We left it, but we can never lose what it has given us.” When Ludie and Jessie Mae arrive to pick her up, they come to what one hopes will be a truce for when they return to Houston.
Older audiences will especially enjoy this engaging story which reminisces about younger years and the nostalgia of home, with an award-winning and talented cast. For more details visit lambsplayers.org.
Performances of “The Trip to Bountiful” are Wednesdays at 2 pm and 7 pm; Thursdays at 7 pm; Fridays and Saturdays at 2 pm and 7 pm; Sundays at 2 pm. Ticket prices range from $28 to $98, with an $8 discount for seniors (66+) and veterans, and half price for active-duty military, youth 5-17, and young adults (18-34) who join the under 35 club. Tickets can be purchased online, by visiting the box office Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 6 pm, or by calling 619-437-6000.
