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Same Time Next Year (2006) >
Hometown Radio / TSPN|Amador Ledger Dispatch
One of the most produced plays in history, Same Time Next Year follows George and Doris, who stumble into a chance encounter one night in 1951 and agree to meet once a year at the same time and place. Although both married to other people, we watch them as they grow up, grow apart and grow together in this touching comedy, which spans the morals and manners of 25 years.
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Hometown Radio and TSPN
Inaugural Production at The Playhouse:
Heart-Warming and Wonderful
by Giles Turner
(2.1.06) Keeping up with Main Street Theatre Works almost requires a Triple-A roadmap. In case you haven’t checked lately, the traveling troupe of theatrical nomads is now performing downstairs in Sutter Creek Days Inn in an intimate dinner theatre setting christened The Playhouse. And the inaugural production in Byron Baxter’s hotel is Bernard Slade’s heartwarming and wonderful comedy Same Time Next Year, which ran for four years on Broadway and was a successful film.
The story is simple and intriguing at the same time. In 1951 a man and a woman meet in Mendocino of all places and have a brief affair. But that’s just the beginning. Even though both are married and devoted to their respective families they agree to meet annually in the same room to rekindle their initial romantic rendezvous.
We see them at six intervals through the 1950’s 1960’s and 1970’s. Needless to say, as this country evolved over those years, George and Doris also change. However, a large element of the humor is that the middle-aged duo goes through different stages of life at different times. Doris becomes a late-blooming flower-child while George evolves into a Goldwater Republican. These conflicts are humorous, but the real driving force of the play is the genuine concern that each character develops for the other and the spouse and children of the other. The two build a caring, tender and loyal friendship.
Successfully meeting the challenge of being the same person but changing over the years, Julie Anchor and Allen Pontes are wonderful as the yearly lovers. They are so charming that you don’t want to let them go. When the play is over, you sit there waiting for more. Why did it have to end? And guess what? Playwright Bernard Slade asked himself the same question and answered it with a sequel: Same Time Another Year, during which we see Doris and George from 1976 to 1993, moving through their early fifties into their late sixties.
Director Susan McCandless does her usual marvelous job. Adding to the nostalgic journey are the costume designs of Michael Coleman, covering the fads and fashions of the changing times; and the sound design of Allen Pontes, bringing back all those great vocal hits of yesterday.
Same Time Next Year runs weekends through March 11; tickets are available at Lizzie Ann’s/Bubblegum Books in Sutter Creek.
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Amador Ledger-Dispatch
"Same Time Next Year" Actors Excel in their Roles
By Brandi Ehlers, Amador Ledger-Dispatch
(2.1.06)
Set in one room over a period of 24 years, Main Street Theatre Works' "Same Time Next Year" follows the improbable one-weekend-a-year relationship of Doris and George, and their growth as individuals and as a couple.
The story opens on a morning in 1951 when Doris and George wake up after a would-be one-night-stand. The expected awkwardness of each character, both of whom are married and meet each other by chance while away from their respective spouses, evolves into George's confession that he thinks he's in love with Doris. Enter scene two and the audience realizes it's been five years and the couple has been meeting at the same place on the same weekend each year.
The expected growth of each character occurs at different times and in different manners; Doris goes through more phases and trends in the beginning, appearing as a 60s housewife, then a few years later as a hippy, bra-less Berkeley student. George, on the other hand, takes slightly longer to show outward changes and appears to be a perpetually uptight CPA until he embraces complete truth-telling and mutton chops in the appropriate time period.
We see that the couple truly does grow and develop a sincere love for each other, despite the fact that they meet once a year and have lives entirely separate from each other the rest of the time. Their physical relationship is as important as their emotional and mental connections, and as the years pass, they begin to think of and need each other more and more in the time that they're not together. The story closes in 1975 with a proposal that can't be accepted, yet a bond that can't be denied.
The dinner theater was held at Main Street Theatre Works' new venue, Sutter Creek Days Inn. The small room with seating right up to the stage allow the audience to be in the play and leaves little room for a "bad" seat.
The set of "Same Time Next Year" never changes, which seems odd considering the 20-plus years that the story spans, but the costumes, music, drink of choice and lingo used by the two characters makes it clear that time is going by.
Doris and George, played by Main Street Theatre Works company members and veteran actors Julie Anchor and Allen Pontes, were multiple characters within themselves. Anchor and Pontes did a remarkable job of showing the development in each character, as each time they came back on stage, roughly five years were supposed to have passed. There were few dialogue mistakes, also remarkable considering that they held continuos conversation throughout each scene. Emotions were conveyed well, and the audience clearly appreciated the humor in the story.
The dinner theatre format of the production was a pleasant experience and seating allowed attendees to socialize with each other while enjoying dinner before the play. The buffet-style dinner and bring-your-own-wine option allowed for a laid-back atmosphere. The entire evening makes for a great relaxing and entertaining night out.
The show will play through March 11 on Fridays and Saturdays with one Thursday night show on March 2. Dinner starts at 6:15 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m. Three Sunday lunch matinees will take place Feb. 5, 12 and 19. There will be no shows on the weekend of Feb. 24. Dinner tickets are $37.50 and lunch tickets are $28. Price includes a meal, non-alcoholic beverage, tax, tip and show. Patrons are encouraged to bring their own wine as Days Inn does not yet have a liquor license. Glasses and corkscrews will be provided.
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