Park Your Car in Harvard Yard
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Schultz, Ruskin
Photo by Shashin Desai
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By Ben Miles
Acclaimed dramatist Israel Horovitz has scripted more than 50 staged plays. Horovitz's Line still endures in its fourth decade of production at off-Broadway's 13th Street Repertory Theater. And long before the blessings of The Godfather were bestowed on Al Pacino, the young actor created an off-Broadway buzz--and was honored with an Obie Award as Best Actor--for his work in Horovitz's intense tale of brutality in the American metropolis, The Indian Wants the Bronx.
Now, Horovitz's 1980 play, Park Your Car In Harvard Yard is onstage, through May 25, at Long Beach's International City Theatre. It is a worthwhile effort. Directed with a sharp focus on characterization by Hope Alexander, Harvard Yard has a rich premise: Jacob Brackish was a school teacher and considered to be the sternest and most rigorous educator ever to conduct class at Gloucester High (in Massachusetts).The erstwhile maestro of English literature and music appreciation is now in his waning months of life. Of course, Brackish still requires his home to be comfortable and well-kept. He, therefore, runs a newspaper advertisement calling for a housekeeper. When frumpy, middle-aged Kathleen Hogan replies to the notice, Jacob--due to an underwhelming response to the ad--hires her on-the-spot.
Brackish doesn't recall that the grudge-holding and vindictive Kathleen was once one of his students--one of the many that this academic taskmaster had failed. Among those on Mr. Brackish's long list of classroom failures are Kathleen's mother; Kathleen's father; and, to add insult to injury, Kathleen's now deceased husband.
Though the set-up may sound more akin to Stephen King's Misery than to Matt Damon and Ben Affleck's uplifting screenplay, Good Will Hunting, make no mistake: Harvard Yard fits squarely into Good Will's life-affirming tent of sentiment, right down to the issues of pedagogical fairness and the lost "r" sounds of the New England dialect.
As Jacob Brackish, Joseph Ruskin is a credible curmudgeon. Beyond the cantankerous affect, Ruskin fills this character with a palpable intellect as well as an embittered, yet formidable, persona. Ruskin commands the stage in a manner that Mr. Brackish would surely have controlled his classroom--with an iron-willed presence.
Jacqueline Schultz portrays Kathleen Hogan in a fashion that is at once obstinate and obtuse. As aggravating as Kathleen's hard-headedness can appear, it is Hogan's authenticity that carries the day and buoys the play.
As an ICT production bonus, Playwright Horovitz has a high time here in a small (pre-recorded) role, supplying the broadcaster's voice coming from a supposedly cash-strapped public radio station. The channel is dedicated to airing the classics to which Mr. Brackish is so devoted.
With a set design (John Iacovelli) that is as believably homey an apartment interior as anything the furnished Oakwood complexes might offer, and lighting (Jared A. Sayeg) that subtly underscores the action, Park You Car In Harvard Yard is a somewhat familiar two-hour trip that's still worth taking.
Park Your Car In Harvard Yard plays Thursdays-Saturdays at 8 p.m. Matinees are 2 p.m. on Sundays. The International City Theatre is located at 300 East Ocean Boulevard, in Long Beach. For reservations, dial (562) 436-4610. For more details, visit www.ictlongbeach.org.
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