Celestina is no saga

Celestina, Arts Club Theatre,
directed by Sue Astley, Through
April. Phone 687-1644.

Barbara Black
THEATRE REVIEW

WENT to Celestina, the

Spanish Bawd, expecting

a sweeping Spanish saga.
But what I got was a simple
love story, some comedy
and a dark statement on
mortality.

Although I’m not familiar with
the orginal classic by Fernando de
Rojas, upon which Steve Petch
based his translation, | suspect the
scope of the thing has been whit-
tled down considerably.

What is left is no more than a
charming and somewhat predict-
able story of lust, folly and greed
— anystory. Ribald fun with some
dark iines tossed in for contempla-
tion.

There is hardly an opportunity to

row fond of characters before
they take their untimely if slightly
melodramatic deaths. There are
references to heresy and witch-
craft, but hardly in a historic
context.

Celestina, played wonderfully by
Florence Patterson, is a sorceress-
shyster who restores virgins and
makes love matches. Her services
are procured by a lovesick
nobleman, Calisto (played by
Francisco Trujillo), whose palms
sweat for the lovely Melibea.

Celestina brings her spells and
magic machinations to the situa-
tion to bring the two lovers
together, while pocketing a few
profits along the way.

The subplot, which is pretty
transparent but provides most of
the comic element, involves two
of Calisto’s servants (Raimund
Stamm and Rod Crawford! who
plot with Celestina to rip vif their

Montgomery
society to
honor work

AS OF this month, North Shore
Lucy Maude Montgomery fins can
trade insights and exchange in-
formation on the beloved Prince
Edward Island author.

In response to the yrowing
world-wide interest in Mont-
gomery, creator of Anne of Green
Gables, a Kindred Spirits of P.E.1
Society has been founded.

Readers may obtain intormation
on Montgomery's life and works
by writing to Kindred Spirits P.E.I
Society, Silver Bush, Park Corner,
Kensington R.R. #2, Prince Edward
Island, COB 1M0.

master. Later, in a fit of greed, they

also turn on the old crone ina
most nasty and unexpected way.

Other than Celestina, the char-
acters in this play are mostly
superficial sketches.

Calisto, especially, comes off as
a silly lover whose death is as un-
passionate as his love for Melibea.
His passions seem never to rise
above the adolescent variety.

Of course, this is fodder for
some of the comedy — Calisto
worships the false idol of love and
even calls Melibea a goddess.

Highlights of this Arts Club pro-
duction include the comic scenes
where the servants keep watch
while Calisto jumps his lover's
bones {and it really is no more
than that — would we ever say
that of Romeo and Juliet?). The
scenes between Celestina and
Melibea (Kelli Fox) are also ably
acted and directed.

But the play is unable to redeem

itself from the bawdy element, and
our heart strings remain unpluck-
ed.

Even the dark ending leaves us
unatiected, since there is no real
tragic element against which the
characters struggle, except the
fickle universe.

Melibea's servant Lucrecia
(Christina Jastrzembska) delivers a
dark speech at the end of
Celestina in which she calls the
world ‘‘a carnival of deceptions.”
But all we can do is shrug at the
idea in half-hearted agreement as
we leave our theatre seats.

The set (Ted Roberts) and
lighting design (Marsha Sibthorpe)
for this play are beautifully done,
however. A wood-hewn scaf-
folding is draped in muslin-like
fabric, which evokes the warm,
sunny days of Spain and pallid,
blue nights.

Costumes are by Christine
Thompson.

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