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Stealing Dixie-Media ReviewsAJC - Access Atlanta: Atlantan Phillip DePoy's new play ‘Stealing Dixie' debuts in Marietta 08/26/2010 A group of Yankee raiders stole a train from a Kennesaw depot in 1862 as part of a plan they believed would end the Civil War and staunch the epic flow of blood -- like the loss of nearly 24,000 lives at the Battle of Shiloh a few days before. Depending on your point of view, you might call the “Great Locomotive Chase” an astonishing act of courage and heroism, a grievous offense to the Confederate cause or a sloppy case of blind patriotism not unlike the terrorism of today. In his terrific new play “Stealing Dixie,” which opens the 29th season of Marietta’s Theatre in the Square, Atlanta playwright Phillip DePoy lets the viewer draw his own conclusions while presenting a deeply felt meditation on the moral ambiguities of war. Writing about something that occurred in the theater’s backyard, DePoy combines an Act One tale of adventure and near-mutiny with a hotly charged Act Two courtroom drama, so that the footnotes of history become people who feel great passion, conflict and loss. We also should mention there’s a really nifty onstage locomotive, which huffs and puffs and chugs along like the stolen train known as the General. Ringleader James Andrews (Zechariah Pierce) and his irascible gun-slinging bunch (Scott E. DePoy as Ross, Rob Lawhon as Parrot, Corey Bradberry as Knight and Bryant Smith as Campbell) rehearse their plan and strike up a wonderful impromptu hootenanny in a hotel room modeled after the real-life Kennesaw House just down the street from the theater. Jumping up on a makeshift wagon, they pretend to hijack the train, troubleshooting the various things that could go wrong. In other, slightly hallucinogenic sequences, we glimpse Campbell’s heartfelt romance with Sally (Kylie Brown), and a grief-stricken young widow (Brown, again) and her mother (the superb Mary Lynn Owen) combing the fields of Shiloh looking for their dead loved one. Owen’s entry, beautifully lit by Ken Yunker, is a stunning moment recalling a Goya vision of hell. This story’s back-and-forth, accordion-style structure works fairly well, although the men rehearse their heist so much that it starts to feel a bit like the movie “Groundhog Day.” Lawhon doubles as a trigger-happy Union soldier and a wig-wearing, tobacco-chewing Southern judge, while Bradberry plays a boyish follower of Andrews and, later, the conductor who chases down his stolen train, a story that’s nearly as riveting as the theft itself. Both actors are good, but they aren’t quite mature enough to provide the leather-chewing intensity that the older characters require. Still, Jessica Phelps West directs this world premiere with polish and precision, and designers Dale Brubaker (sets) and Linda Patterson (costumes) create a splendid and authentic environment. Music director Scott E. DePoy's choices are so beautiful and heartfelt that you wish for more. Phillip DePoy, the author of Theatre in the Square’s Celestine Sibley plays and a well-known mystery writer, is working at the top of his game here. “Stealing Dixie” is a richly described commingling of history and imagination. Theater review Grade: B+ 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays. 2:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sundays. Also 2:30 p.m. Sept. 1. Through Sept. 12. $24-$33. Theatre in the Square, 11 Whitlock Ave., Marietta. 770-422-8369, theatreinthesquare.com  Atlanta Theatre Buzz: 08/26/2010 STEALING DIXIE Theatre in the Square BEFORE AND AFTER Grade: B- In April of 1862, a group of 24 Union "raiders" stole a train, taking it north towards Chattanooga in an attempt to disrupt one of the major supply arteries of the Confederacy. Although the raid was a failure, it spawned a cottage industry of books, movies, and legends. The Southern Museum in Kennesaw chronicles the raid, displaying memorabilia and the looted engine itself ("The General"). Now, Marietta's Theatre in the Square has commissioned playwright Philip DePoy to dramatize the story, and the result is "Stealing Dixie," an intriguing piece that perhaps starts strong, but derails a bit during the second act. Constructed as a "Before and After" chronicle, the play first shows us some of the conspirators as they wait and fret through the night before the raid. This first act includes flashbacks and musical interludes, all of which give welcome dimension to the Union operatives, all of which give the play a sense of period and place and character. It also delves into the motivations of the men, chronicling the divide between "military" and "civilian" mindsets, illustrating exactly what drives men to disrupt their lives in the pursuit of a (seemingly) foolhardy scheme. Act Two then jumps to the trial of the ringleaders, supposedly showing us what went wrong. Here, I felt the play "jumped the track" a bit, giving us some characters who bring an unwelcome supernatural element into the proceedings, over-simplifying the basic North-South conflict, and offering a too-pat "feel good" condemnation of war in general, all of which are at emotional odds with the inevitable conclusion. It also drops a few characters from the first Act, forcing the actors to double in roles that are necessarily plot-driven and rather shallow. Two actresses also play multiple characters, one of whom is a pointless Act II character with a seemingly "psychic" connection to her Act I counterpart. It doesn't help that the double-casting is clumsily underscored by a "you look like her" line. Another reason Act II fell a little short for me was that the ideas on view, the attitudes towards war and country and honor, are reflections of those espoused in Act I. I suppose this underscores the similarities between Northern and Southern mindsets, but, to me, it felt contrived, reducing the characters to playwright's stand-ins. It seems to me that conflicting viewpoints would have better served the themes, add more tension and conflict, and given the finale more impact. Still, the cast and production were effective enough to mitigate for much of the problem caused by these seeming quibbles. Zechariah Pierce, as Andrews, the leader of the raiders, is all earnest commitment, struggling against all odds to keep his disparate men on purpose, never wavering from his commitment to bringing about an early end to the war. Scott DePoy plays the grizzled army veteran, Ross, chafing under the leadership of a "civilian," yet just as determined to successfully complete the mission. And Bryant Smith provides the heart of the group, a simple Ohio man whose flashback is one of the tenderest moments of the play. Rob Lawhon does fine as a fourth member of the group, then disappears under a bad wig to play the judge in the trial. Although this latter character is thinly written, Mr. Lawhon manages to find a core of sincerity that at least makes the author's words plausible. Rounding out the cast are Corey Bradberry, fine as the young engineer, and Kylie Brown and Mary Lynn Owen equally fine in the five female roles. The physical production is probably this show's greatest assets. Scenic Designer Dale Brubaker has filled the stage with a silhouetted locomotive (complete with moving parts), with the downstage playing area convincingly alternates between flashback, "now," and "the plan" sequences, and it is well lit by Ken Yunker (one of the best lighting designs of the year, in my humble opinion), Thom Jenkins has created a soundscape that combines night sounds, train sounds, and musical ambience that mix nicely with the usual passing train noises that are this theatre's unfortunate lot in life. So this is a play I desperately wanted to like. I've enjoyed Mr. DePoy's other Theatre in the Square commissions (especially "Christmas at Sweet Apple"), and this particular piece of local history has always fascinated me, spurred mainly by my love of the Buster Keaton (highly fictionalized) silent movie of the account ("The General"). And, the first act was a promising piece that dwelt more on mood and character than on politics. Perhaps extending the "Before" sequence, filling in more background, maybe even showing us some of the "players" on the Confederate side, and ending with the start of the raid itself would have been more satisfying to me. As it is. I found the second act made this particular engine lose steam. With its shallow rendering of Southern attitudes and with its cheap appeal to the supernatural, it was, well, downright unappealing. Still, the first act, the production itself and the performances by the three chief raiders are cause enough to recommend this slice of Marietta history. -- Brad Rudy (BKRudy@aol.com) Purepolitics.com: 08/20/2010 Theatre in the Square- Stealing Dixie Written by Wilson Trivino Thursday, 12 August 2010 11:28 Marietta, Georgia- With the train roaring in the background and the site of the old hotel where the accomplices stayed literary a few hundred feet away where a handful dare devils Yankees plotted to stir havoc in the heart of the confederacy by stealing a train. The story of the General locomotive is one that has become legendary. Most locals learn of this act of treason during the war of northern aggression, also known as the Civil War, where a locomotive named the General was stolen arrogantly by a band of outlaw Yankees. The Theatre in the Square’s current production of Stealing Dixie attempt to revisit and retrace the steps of what actually happened and revisit the intentions of these normally gentlemanly men. This world premier also is relevant because we do live in a nation at war. The approach to telling this story is eye opening because the audience experiences the same incident through the lenses of opposing views. The plan was simple, Northern sympathizers in an act to help facilitate the end of the war went down to Georgia dressed as Southerners to steal a train and take it to Chattanooga. What these renegades did not expect was the passion of the South and how they fought back. At the end these Yankees were hanged for their actions but you can’t but feel for their motives. The set and costumes do take you into a world long gone, with the proper attire and mannerisms of what one would imagine a civil war America to look like. The large scale train prop with actual turning wheels will carry you along for the ride of this adventure. This production humanizes the dimensions of war and also serves as a way to relive this historic episode of a dark chapter in our nation’s history. War is never the answer but this play will make you think, “what if?” For tickets and show times visit www.theatreinthesquare.com or call (404)422-8369. Smoke Signals Online: "Stealing Dixie" explores human condition 08/20/2010 The great chase of the Confederate locomotive, The General, began at about 5:00 a.m., April 12,1862. It was to make the 138 mile trip to Chattanooga on The Western and Atlanta Railroad pulling freight and passengers that day, but about 22 union spies dressed in civilian clothes and buying their tickets in groups of twos and threes boarded the train. At the time the Confederate army held both Atlanta and Chattanooga but the Union forces had captured Huntsville, Alabama and was pushing east. The leader of the spies, a Kentucky civilian, named James Andrews, had received the okay and given a group of men, including experienced rail roaders, to commandeer a confederate train to disrupt the rail line from Atlanta to Chattanooga. Andrews’ plan was to take over the General at Big Shanty (Kennesaw) where there wasn’t a telegraph operator, cut the telegraph line and take the train—less passenger cars—while its crew and passengers were in the Lacey Hotel for a twenty minute breakfast break. He succeeded. The objective was to tear out track so they couldn’t be followed and then to blow up the bridge over the Etowah River to permanently disrupt train service between the two confederate cities. He failed in this as he was pursued by a relentless band of rebels led by William Fuller, who was not only the General’s conductor but also a captain in the Georgia Militia. The spies were stopped by a lack of wood, water and a bad valve just past Ringgold. They fled into the mountains towards Alabama and the Union army but all of them were captured, returned to Atlanta for trial. Eight were hung. Eight escaped and six were exchanged for Confederate prisoners. “War induces human beings to do all sorts of strange thinks for so many complicated reasons. Both sides always say that God is on their side. And no matter who wins, nearly everyone admits the conflict might not have been worth the cost,”said Phillip Depoy. The above quote defines his play but the challenge is to merge this active thriller over the rails through the wild Georgia country side with his defining mission and keep the excitement of the chase. To do this he starts his play the night before in the hotel room of the conspirators, reduced to five. The characters get the opportunity to tell their story and at Andrews’ pleading they rehearse the raid. The rehearsals are acted-out presentations of the actual trip as in real time but afterwards each segment returns to the hotel room. In the second act the scene shifts to the Atlanta courtroom for the trial and the scenes of the chase acted-out in retrospect to present Fuller’s pursuit of the Yankee spies. It works. Depoy also uses songs of the period usually for dramatic affect. Except for the first piece called ”Stolen” an up-tempo bluegrass number, which caused me to marvel at the musicianship and voices of the five actors, I found the songs to be a bit on the somber side—of course. Too much cannot be said of the acting. The personalities of all five conspirators were brought out before the first act was over. Zechariah Pierce as Andrews was a convincing leader; Bryant Smith (Campell) was the groups conscience (he had a good singing voice too); Scott E. Depoy played Sgt. Ross, the skeptic, with perfectly timed outbursts. The remaining two played dual roles. Corey Bradbury was the engineer, enthusiastic, knowledgeable and full of youthful fervor. Then with the addition of a mustache and a beard and a change in personality he became Fuller, the Georgia Militia captain. Rob Lawhon was the Ohio farm boy, plain, uneducated—“not stupid.” He also was the trial judge. What a wonderful job he did balancing the arrogance of a man who seemed to have decided before the trial the men would hang and the rational lecturing judge, who did need to stop and spit at the spittoon occasionally. The two women in the cast, Kylie Brown and Mary Lynn Owen completed a strong, professional cast. I enjoyed the play and I think it should have a strong appeal to not only people from this area and those interested in a historical presentation about the South but to anyone interested in the human conditions brought on by war. Stealing Dixie by Phillip Depoy: Edgar Award winning author of the play “Easy,” author of 12 books and 39 theatre pieces. Director of the theatre program at Clayton State University Director: Jessica Phelps West won a 2009 Suzi Best Director for “Tradin’Paint.” And over twenty five years of acting experience. Publishers features service: Stealing Dixie 08/20/2010 The War Between the States (or what them Yankees call the Civil War) had been raging for a while. The battle of Shiloh had claimed more than 100,000 lives, and a special operations group of 24 men had decided that maybe the war could wind down if they could grab off The General locomotive and train which ran from Atlanta up to Tennessee. Seemed like an unlikely heist, and had it succeeded we can only speculate on what effect, if any, it might have produced. It kind of seems like a natural for Theatre in the Square where one can often hear the whistles of the trains as they pass just west of the theatre. But what Atlanta playwright Phillip DePoy has done is to let us into the minds of these guys starting the night before their bold moves. You start off in a hotel room where the conspirators are rehearsing their routines. Made me think “Oceans Five” the way they try to nail down each move. Some of the action moves stage left to a prop that we quickly accept as the locomotive. And in the second act that hotel room becomes the CSA Court in which three of the gang are on trial. A fine cast, wonderfully directed by Jessica Phelps West and a story that while somewhat irrelevant in today’s world, is nonetheless intriguing. And a very interesting scenic backdrop used to represent the General. Kind of makes you want to travel up to Kennesaw to visit him. Tickets and more info at theatreinthesquare.com examiner.com: True Talent in Stealing Dixie 08/04/2010 In the world of theater, it is hard to find a historical play that doesn't lull you straight to sleep. Not to mention how difficult it is to find a tale that the world hasn’t already seen before. Well world, the time has come for something new, historical and anything but dull. Phillip DePoy’s Stealing Dixie (directed by Jessica Phelps West) is the gripping story of the Andrews’ Raiders attempt to steal the confederate locomotive, The General, during the Civil War. DePoy has created a stunning script that provides a detailed look at the power and influence of war and the affect it has on the most common of men. With a stellar cast, beautiful choice in music and supported by a talented artistic staff, DePoy’s world premiere will, no doubt, be extending past it’s intended closing date. Theater in the Square (Marietta) is the current home to this world premiere and has made some great changes to its facility to kick off the 2010-2011 season. A newly renovated front entrance and expanded lobby provides an inviting and comfortable welcome to enthusiastic audience members. As you enter the theater to take your seats the set before you evokes reactions like, “Ooh!” and “Oh wow!” and maybe even a “Oh my gosh, a train!” Yes, a train! Scenic designer Dale Brubaker has created a simple yet masterful set that is not only beautiful but creates the illusion that the stage is much larger than it really is, a plus for any theater. As you await the dim of the house lights the subtle sounds of trains perfectly set the mood. And now to the play… A perfectly mixed cocktail of suspense, storytelling and drama is paired with subtle humor and beautiful Civil War era music to create Stealing Dixie. The play opens with our five main characters mulling around in a hotel room. James Andrews, played by Zechariah Pierce*, is a Kentucky born civilian with a plan to end the war, a plan that rests solely upon stealing the confederate train known as The General. He and his “raiders” (Scott DePoy*, Rob Lawhon*, Corey Bradberry and Bryant Smith*) review and simulate the entire heist from start to finish, all the while following Andrews’ meticulously calculated plan. As we get to know each member of the group, we journey through their memories and are introduced to a number of characters portrayed by Kylie Brown and Mary Lynn Owen* These two talented women provide the perfect amount of femininity and grace to an otherwise all-male cast. The transitions from reality to visualizing the heist and from the present to the past are beautifully executed, allowing audience members to remain completely entranced with every scene. DePoy also pairs scenes with the beautiful and slightly haunting melodies of Civil War era music, played (instrumentally) and sung live by the entire cast. Songs like “On Shiloh Hill”, “Stealing” and “Johnny has gone for a Soldier” are perfect compliments to DePoy’s script. While the entire ensemble can be labeled outstanding, it is Zechariah Pierce’s brilliant and inspiring portrayal as James Andrews that deserves the highest praise. Stealing Dixie is playing at Theater in the Square Tuesday through Sunday starting August 4 through September 12. Ticket information can be found at the Theater in the Square website or by calling (770) 422-8369. Trust me when I say that this is one production you won’t want to miss. Back to Performance |
