Publisher: Elizabeth Hurd

Blood Relations Brings Chills and Thrills at Carpenter Square Theatre

……..by Adrienne Proctor

Brenna Betz as Lizzie/Bridget (left) and Corrynn Englerth as Lizzie/Actress (right)

Sharon Pollock’s Blood Relations is the mostly true tale of Lizzie Borden and the events leading up to and following the murders of her father and step-mother in Massachusetts in 1892. The play features characters based on actual people and events, as well as fictional characters.

Corrynn Englerth stars as The Actress, a mysterious woman staying with Lizzie, ten years after Lizzie’s acquittal in the infamous murders. Englerth also spends the majority of the show as Lizzie herself, as she is “acting out” the murderous events ten years earlier, to the tune of Lizzie’s narration. Brenna Betz is the original Lizzie, who inserts herself back into her own past during the reenactment, this time as her former housekeeper Bridget. The Actress seeks to understand if her roommate could’ve been capable of committing the murders, and in acting out the scene with the suspect at hand, she learns how quickly a sought out question may be answered.

As confusing as it may seem to have the two main actors playing the same person, one for “real” and one for “pretend”, Englerth and Betz keep the scenario clear and defined. Betz, in her role as Bridget, dons an Irish accent that is clearly distinguishable from the haughty tone she uses as the beguiled Lizzie, ten years post trial and all the more bitter for it. Englerth mirrors that tone as the younger Lizzie, adding to it the voraciousness of a 34 year old, bored, spoiled woman who’s confident enough to try almost anything. These two actresses compliment, but don’t copy, each other. When they switch back into the original characters they began the show with, it’s almost with a physical jolt, as if the spirits of young Lizzie and Bridget have been lifted from their bodies.

Blood tells in Blood Relations

Englerth’s eyes change from the hardened young Lizzie to the stunned, shocked, and even horrified Actress who can’t believe not only what she’s hearing, but what she is now doing as she acts out the tale. And in the very parlor room where one of the murders occurred! Betz changes in her mannerisms, suddenly stiff and angry, then melting back into the ambiguously trustworthy Bridget. These subtle changes are necessary to keep the audience on the same page, but more than simple logistics, they’re breath-taking to see. With such talent, spoken dialogue is hardly needed.

Ashley Bower is a solidifying presence, playing the sister Borden, Emma, both in the flashback scenes and in the 1902 setting. Her relationship with Lizzie has never been good, and Bower’s consistency is needed to anchor the show as the audience careens back and forth between past and present. Michael Tull arrives as Harry Wingate, the catalyst for all Lizzie’s brewing trouble. Tull is by all means the villain in this tale, which is an interesting concept considering that our protagonist Lizzie is historically known as a brutal murderer. Tull’s skills as an actor are fine enough, but against the three powerful visions painted by Englerth, Betz, and Bower, he barely manages to tread water. The same can be said for Barry Thurman as Lizzie’s doomed father Andrew. The audience may be expected to hate him as we learn more and more about his heated relationship with his daughters. However, he comes across as so flat and stiff, you’d rather him just get his lines over with and exit the scene. This is truly a missed opportunity for Thurman and Tull to shine bright and dig deep into roles that could be rich and devious, but in the end just get in the way.

Laurie Blankenship’s scenes as the hated stepmother of Lizzie and Emma, Abigail, are unfortunately short and few. She’s got the confidence and comfort on the stage necessary to portray the woman who became the breaking point. Blankenship takes an uncomfortable amount of verbal abuse throughout the show, but she never cowers or cringes. In this cast of strong females, Blankenship holds up.

If there’s any comic relief to be had in this chilling tale, it’s provided by Greg Crall. Crall is Dr. Patrick, a flirtatious acquaintance of Lizzie and perhaps the only voice of reason she’s willing to hear. Their banter is a tension relief, and Crall is pleasant. Crall also portrays a defense attorney in several brief scenes that portray the characters on the stand during the murder trial. These scenes can be even more confusing, as they take the scene from the flashback reenactment in the parlor room evening ten years later to an even further spiral down the timeline to yet another scenario. Jarring at times, but they do serve a purpose, and Crall carries the scene as the lawyer.

This play is above all a tale of the women who lived it, and the talented actresses make it so. The men are, for most of the show, playing catchup. The story itself is edge of your seat, gripping and will send genuine chills down your neck. You might find yourself humming a little nursery rhyme on the way home, or canting along in your head as you drive, repeating the familiar question… Did you do it, Lizzie? Did you? Just wait and you’ll see.

Carpenter Square Theatre’s production of Blood Relations runs through April 21, 2018 Friday and Saturday evenings. There will be two Thursday evening and one Sunday matinee performance. For tickets, call the box office at 405-232-6500.