Shelby (Kimberly Doreen Burns) comforts Percy (Emily Van Vliet Perea) in Actors' Playhouse's production of "The Spitfire Grill." (Photos by Alberto Romeu)
Sometimes we just need a reset or a spark. Even if the seemingly hopeless rut in which you find yourself has lasted a decade, positive change can happen. For an illustration, do yourself a favor and experience Actors’ Playhouse’s moving professional production of the dark yet hopeful and refreshing award-winning musical "The Spitfire Grill."
The production, with sensitive direction by Actors’ Playhouse Artistic Director David Arisco, runs through Sunday, Nov. 2 in the Miracle Theatre’s upstairs Balcony Theater, a smaller, more intimate space than the mainstage downstairs. The running time is about two hours and 20 minutes, including a 15-minute intermission.
Talented cast members Emily Van Vliet Perea, Jim Ballard, Kimberly Doreen Burns, Nate Promkul, Heather Jane Rolff, Laura Turnbull, and Tom Wahl deliver performances that are sometimes intense, sometimes quiet but always believable and deeply affecting.
Joy suffuses the action in this scene from Actors' Playhouse's production of The Spitfire Grill. Pictured from left are Percy (Emily Van Vliet), Hannah (Laura Turnbull), Sheriff Joe Sutter (Nate Promkul), and Effy Krayneck (Kimberly Doreen Burns). (Photo by Alberto Romeu)
The award-winning, esteemed Actors’ Playhouse, on Coral Gables’ Miracle Mile, bills this production as a “Miami premiere.” But this chamber musical isn’t entirely new to South Florida. About 75 miles north of the Miracle Theatre, Palm Beach Dramaworks presented its own touching mounting of the musical in 2019. Today, six years later, we need an inspiring show like this even more than in pre-pandemic America ; just glance at the grim headlines.
While "The Spitfire Grill" is a musical, it’s hardly a big, brassy Broadway show in the style of "Wicked." On the contrary, it’s a smaller, quietly affecting adaptation of Lee David Zlotoff’s dark 1996 film. The show premiered Off-Broadway in 2001. Though mostly faithful to its source, the stage version is considerably lighter than the movie. In fact, it’s contagiously joyful at times.
The libretto and score by James Valcq and Fred Alley call for seven actors and far fewer instruments than in a large-scale production. The music blends folk and Americana, creating a sound that’s instantly familiar yet distinctive. While some numbers are somber, the score ultimately carries hope, determination, and optimism. A five-piece live band, consisting of guitar, keyboard, and mandolin among them deftly accompanies the performers, who disappear into the show’s relatable characters.
A mysterious visitor (Tom Wahl) and Percy (Emily Van Vliet). (Photo by Alberto Romeu)
While the creators don’t specify a time, we intuit that the setting is the present. The locale is the fictional, tiny Gilead, Wisconsin (changed from Gilead, Maine, in the movie).
Percy Talbott, just out of prison, seeks a fresh start in Gilead, drawn by an article in a travel publication. Her probation officer finds her a job at Hannah Ferguson’s struggling Spitfire Grill, a nondescript eatery the owner placed on the market a decade ago without success.
For Hannah, the grill is a constant reminder of the painful memories surrounding her missing son. While Hannah and her fellow townsfolk seek to move on from the past, Percy also desires a new beginning. She has done her time and is ready for a new chapter. Percy and the diner prove to be the perfect pairing each harbors secrets and ultimately provides what the other needs.
To the musical creators’ credit, we don’t immediately learn the nature of those secrets. Through delayed exposition, Valcq and Alley deftly provide just enough information to keep us riveted, thanks to their stirring music and lively, unpredictable libretto.
Hannah (Laura Turnbull). (Photo by Alberto Romeu)
Unquestionably, the musical’s encouraging, joyful ending provides a far more satisfying conclusion than the film’s melodramatic, grief-stained finale, even though the movie ultimately leaves us feeling optimistic.
Before the musical offers glimmers of light, it begins in darkness. At the top of the show, Percy is in her prison cell, singing vivid lyrics from the opening number, “A Ring Around the Moon.”
Outside in the night
There’s a ring around the moon
The wind sings in barbed wire
I’ve listened to the tune.
What seems like fifty years
Or maybe it was five
It's hard to count the days
When you're buried alive
Arisco wisely stages this moment in total darkness. He and his team could have shown Percy behind bars, but the pitch-black staging works just as well. The absence of light reflects Percy’s lonely state as she faces an uncertain future after doing serious time for a serious crime. We don’t learn the exact nature of Percy’s deed until later. While the show’s creators don’t condone her actions (and neither should we), they humanize her, reminding us that many of us deserve a shot at redemption, forgiveness, and new beginnings.
Some of us resist change. It can be unsettling, so we avoid what makes us uncomfortable. Such individuals include Hannah’s opinionated nephew, Caleb Thorpe, a conscientious man who may be Hannah’s sole caretaker (we learn little about her family).
With newcomer Percy working at his aunt’s grill, Caleb becomes protective especially when he learns she’s fresh out of prison. Yet he can also come across as gruff and intimidating.
As Jim Ballard skillfully portrays him, Caleb cuts an imposing figure, standing 6-foot-3, and his intensity heightens tension in every scene. Among Arisco’s striking stage pictures is Caleb standing over his well-meaning wife, Shelby (Kimberly Doreen Burns), about to strike her as she shields herself.
Sheriff Joe Sutter (Nate Promkul), Percy (Emily Van Vliet) and Caleb Thrope (Jim Ballard). (Photo by Alberto Romeu)
Ballard, no stranger to South Florida audiences, shouts thunderously and leans forward in attack mode. Yet his choices feel grounded in character. His shock and shame in a pivotal moment are vividly believable, and his deep, rich bari-tenor voice reverberates through the intimate Balcony Theatre.
If there’s a shortcoming, it lies not with Ballard but with the writing: Caleb never gets the chance to reconcile with Percy.
Perea, making her Actors’ Playhouse debut, portrays Percy with the right mix of weariness, sadness, and determination. You feel for her, but you don’t pity her; Percy doesn’t pity herself. Assertive and confident, she stands up to Caleb without hesitation, yet Perea also shows Percy’s vulnerability, making her a fully realized, strong female character.
“That man deserves better than me,” she says softly, referring to Sheriff Joe Sutter (Promkul) after his proposal. Your heart goes out to her as Percy divulges her secret. Again, we don’t condone her actions, but we understand her motives. Like Jean Valjean in Les Misérables, Percy deserves a chance to start over.
Percy retains some mystery. She speaks with a southern accent (which Perea nails) but says she hails from Ohio. At such times, we wonder whether she’s telling the whole truth.
Effy Krayneck (Kimberly Doreen Burns) and Sheriff Joe Sutter (Nate Promkul). (Photo by Alberto Romeu)
Another mysterious character, “The Visitor,” appears. With long hair, mustache, and beard, Wahl looks unrecognizable. Though silent, his tentative expression conveys discomfort. Revealing more would spoil the show for potential audiences.
Turnbull, an award-winning performer, steps into the role of Hannah Ferguson with ease. Speaking in a clear, sharp voice that conveys no-nonsense toughness, Turnbull makes Hannah proud yet approachable. While her gruffness is evident, she shows a softer side as well. During one scene, at the end of Act One, Hannah and others dance arm in arm—an invigorating moment we want to join. Burns’s Shelby displays believable nerves at first, then warmth and compassion, becoming one of Percy’s closest friends.
Town gossip Effy Krayneck can be difficult to keep from tipping into caricature. Rolff’s sharp tongue, wide eyes, and comic timing inject humor, offsetting some of the show’s darkness. Promkul’s Sheriff Joe Sutter conveys authority without arrogance, deftly portraying a mild-mannered man going through the motions yet longing for escape from a humdrum existence.
The performers prove to be double threats, skillfully acting and singing with strong, expressive voices. They perform on Brandon M. Newton’s minimalistic but functional set. The sky in the background is especially striking, with colors that reinforce mood—grayish for gravity, pinkish for daylight or hope. Realistic tables and a refrigerator make the diner welcoming and orderly, fitting Hannah’s nature.
Lighting designer Eric Nelson varies intensity appropriately. Upbeat scenes feature brighter lighting than dimly lit memory scenes. Costume designer Ellis Tillman outfits characters fittingly, from Caleb’s jeans (blue-collar everyman) to darker clothes that underscore the show’s seriousness. Sound designer Reidar Sorensen ensures consistently clear audio.
With heartfelt lyrics, an evocative score, richly drawn characters, a compelling story, and themes that stay with you, "The Spitfire Grill" succeeds on every level. And Actors’ Playhouse demonstrates once again its prowess in producing powerful musical theater.
If You Go:
- What: Actors’ Playhouse’s professional production of The Spitfire Grill.
- When: Through Sunday, Nhrough Nov. 2. Performances are at 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 3 p.m. Sundays.
- Where: Miracle Theatre, 280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables.
- Tickets: $45-$100. A 10 percent discount for seniors is available on weekdays and $15 student rush tickets are available before curtain. Call (305) 444-9293 or go to www.actorsplayhouse.org.
