The ‘Curse of the Starving Class’ lifts the Firehouse Theatre to new heights

The Firehouse Theatre Project has done it again with Sam Shepard’s “Curse of the Starving Class.” Thought provoking and dark, it centers around a family struggling to survive despite numerous setbacks.

The play opens with Wesley (Justin Dray) cleaning up shards of glass from the front door that his father, while in a drunken rage, beat down the night before. In a standout scene, Dray recounts the night’s events from his point of view to his mother, Ella (Mary Carpenter), while ringing the handle of the broom.

Mary Carpenter, filling in for Irene Ziegler, stuck out as the weak link in the cast. Fumbling lines was the least of her problems when she lacked motivation in nearly all of her scenes, a problem that the other actors did not have. It was obvious that she was working very hard on stage, which took away from the play a little.

Wesley’s father, Weston (Joe Inscoe), got fired from his job and left the family for a while. While Ella thought that Weston was gone for good, she began to see a lawyer friend of hers, Taylor (Beauregard Marie), who convinced her that it was a good idea to sell the house to him.

When Taylor came to the house to speak with Ella, he was greeted by her spunky and witty daughter Emma (Amy Sproul). Sproul, who is only in the eighth grade, was a firecracker on stage. Her on-stage bantering with Taylor was quick-paced and wonderfully executed.

Another shining moment was when she revealed her elaborately planned dream of becoming a mechanic to her mother. Emma was the comic relief for “Curse of the Starving Class.” The way that she shouted and cursed at the refrigerator for stealing her chicken, which she needed for a 4-H Club project, was priceless.

Soon after Taylor and Ella left, Weston returned home. Dray really shined in his scenes with Inscoe. The two had an interesting relationship based on fear, but it was obvious that Weston still respected and wanted to be like his father.

Inscoe was amazing. Every scene he was in was dynamic and powerful. He had no problem being gritty, and that was exactly what the play needed. Watching him in his drunken rage, it was obvious why his children feared him. He was off balance and anytime Emma or Wesley said something he wasn’t fond of he, would stumble towards them ready to take a swipe.

By the third act he had done a complete 180-degree turn for the better, and Inscoe made even that believable. His best scene is when he realizes that his son has become just like him.

The refrigerator was almost as pivotal to the plot as any of the characters. Since Weston had been out of work for so long, they had no food. Each character kept opening and shutting the refrigerator hoping to find food. They even went as far as speaking into it, pleading for food or screaming at it.

By the end of the play, when the refrigerator is full of food that Ella buys, Wesley has a nervous breakdown because he is so hungry and devoured much of the food in the refrigerator.

The play ends on a somber note, which seemed very appropriate. It would not have had the same impact if the family had started hugging with a “happily ever after” banner over their heads. Weston’s debts catch up to him and everyone else has to pay for his mistakes.

Although certain parts of the play make it sound like it is a circus, male nudity and a live barnyard animal for instance, the “Curse of the Starving Class” was anything but that. Its slice-of-life style is something that is missing from modern plays.

Despite the fact that one of the actors was not completely up to par, “Curse” achieved everything that a good play should.