Theater review part deux: The Last Meeting of the Knights of the White Magnolia

by Clyde Berry of John Garcia's The Column

The Contemporary Theatre of Dallas' current production of The Last Meeting of the Knights of the White Magnolia is the most solid piece of theater I've reviewed in a good while. Each performer has put together a wonderful character that has been skillfully directed into an entertaining tale.

Knights is a part of A Texas Trilogy, sometimes known as The Bradleyville Trilogy, by Preston Jones. This would seem to be the last of the three plays to be produced by CTD having presented The Oldest Living Graduate and Lu Ann Hampton Laverty Oberlander in previous seasons with some of the same cast/crew. These plays capture the eccentricities of small town life in the fictional West Texas town of Bradleyville. Jones' trilogy was first performed in Dallas in the early '70s, and after getting discovered, were remounted in the east, eventually landing at the Kennedy Center before a brief and critically diverse run on Broadway.

Knights brings us into a meeting of the Knights of the White Magnolia, held in the meeting room of the Cattleman's Hotel in 1962. The play is simply the events that take place at the meeting. Be warned though, whenever a plot can be so easily summed up into a seemingly bland sentence there's often a great deal more going on. This is definitely the case here. The story has very little action, but a great wealth of character interaction. The Knights are a group of men who want to advance the white cause, but in a more civilized way than the KKK. This idea seems outdated for the time, as is concluded by some of the men themselves. The contradictions between how the men appear, versus who they really are, and what the Knights stand for are the debate that takes place. Think of it as Steel Magnolias starring the Grumpy Old Men or The Odd Couple. For two hours we watch the men bicker and squabble their way through family histories, the purpose of the club, and judgments of each others characters.

While this could seemingly get boring, the interest comes from watching the interactions between the men. Rufe Phelps and Olin Potts, are the routinely bickering friends and veteran club members. L.D. Alexander is the reigning club officer. Red Grover is the dour one who really is racist. Skip Hampton and Milo Crawford are the younger, newer members. Colonel J.C. Kinkaid is the ancient legacy of the group, and Lonnie Roy McNeil is the hopeful new member to be initiated. Ramsey-Eyes is the nice "colored" that the gents have hired to keep the place clean, and to guard the door. It's clear that for most, the group is more for socializing than the racial ambitions of the founder. These guys gather to gossip, drink, play dominoes, and get away from the women. The employ of Ramsey-Eyes proves that they don't really believe in the ideals of the club outside of the notions of fraternity.

The elderly Ramsey-Eyes is played enthusiastically by the young Kenne Sparks. Sparks is appropriately aged and has developed a very solid physical character for the helper that pops in and out of scenes a few brief times. Sparks has not made Ramsey-Eyes a stereotype, but isn't really given much of an opportunity (in the script) to really interact with the other guys. He does a great job, and it would be nice had more been written for him, especially a confrontation with Red debating the relevance of the Knights.

Bradley Campbell (Rufe) and J. Rod Pannek (Olin) are the bickering buddies. They open and close the show with their routine antics. Campbell and Pannek have good chemistry and really make it feel like they could sit on a porch all day long drifting from topic to topic never wrapping up any point and joyfully going from idea to idea. As long as they get to play dominos, everything will be fine. Its quite fun to watch one get the other worked up only to get sidetracked by a question from the other men. I'm sure as the run progresses, they're interplay will get more layered and enjoyable.

Red Grover, as played by Kevin Grammer, is the neighborhood grump with bad politics. Grammer does very well bringing out the frustration and disgust Red oozes forth. His energy level and intentions are spot on, never letting Red seem ridiculous for his views. While not the villain of the piece (since there really isn't one as far as a character) he provides the bile needed to balance out the optimism of the other men. A nice performance well executed.

L.D. Alexander is brought to life by Don Long. L.D. attempts to run the meeting in spite of the constant sidetracking and disruptions from the members. Long makes L.D. sensitive and considerate of the others, especially the outbursts or ramblings of Col. Kinkaid. L.D. has the traditions in his heart, and the hope of their continuance. He is best when he realizes what the future of the Knights will be.

The future of the Knights rests in the hands of new members like Lonnie Roy McNeil, played by Trey Birkhead. Birkhead's character has all the sincere southern manners he should, with just enough aw-shucks to keep him from being a goober. Lonnie is sincere in his desire to belong to something, and puts up with quite a lot from the brothers. Birkhead has an excellent balance of the comedy of quirky personalities without overdoing any business and turning it into shtick.

Nye Cooper's Milo Crawford is the henpecked one, or at least that's what we're led to believe by Red. Cooper and Grammer have an amusing confrontation when Milo finally has had enough of Red's jabs. Cooper has great timing, and really allows Milo time to think and react to everything around him, whether Milo wants to or not.

Kevin Moore has lots to chew on in bringing Skip Hampton to life. It seems Skip is a liar and an alcoholic. Moore is the most animated listener of the group, and Skip always has something on his mind about what just happened. Moore has a great energy in Skip, who is always on the fringe trying to move things along. His physical character helps separate him from the generation of older members, without resorting to cliché young gestures. He's my favorite one to watch, always engaged.

Col. Kinkaid is marvelously created by John S. Davies. Davies locks in on Kinkaid and never loses, drops, or wavers in his performance. It would be very easy to make Kinkaid a simple crazy old man and one-note joke, but Davies has artfully developed the softer moments Kinkaid has to truly heartbreaking results.

Preston's script has a few questions that are left unanswered, and misses out on a few potentially interesting moments. The irony of a racist club that meets in a building and employs a minority everyone is seemingly friends with, is not lost. But it would be interesting to hear Ramsey-Eyes speak on the subject. The men do discuss the relevance of the club, but it comes late in the show. I noticed other audience members were getting restless as they were looking for more action. As mentioned, this is a character puzzle, and the pieces are there but the plays in the scripted game are subtle and slow. Rene Moreno's direction moves everything along at a decent pace and compensates for some of the slowness in the script. His stage pictures are nice, and folks move around naturally and often. While this may sound obvious, with a cast of potentially nine men, things could get very static very quickly with "meeting blocking" that never changes. I could question the pace of a moment here or there, but honestly, it'd be my personal preference to try to derive more out of the script. Moreno's choices are solid and cleanly executed.

In addition to wonderful performances, the tech in this production is equally outstanding. Rodney Dobbs has designed a beautiful meeting room that has been lovingly built and distressed to perfection. No detail was overlooked. I especially liked the molding throughout, special painting in the hallway outside the meeting room, and the interior reveal of the faded ceremonial picture. Mason York's distant train sounds were nicely balanced and localized. Tish Mussey's props, especially the ceremonial regalia, were delightfully dilapidated and appropriate. The lighting design by Russell K. Dyer was effective and coordinated well with the set. I also liked the practical chandeliers, which was a nice touch. The cross light sequences were nicely handled by both designer and stage manger/board op. Christina Dickson's costumes are fun, realistic, nicely done. I was curious about some padding, but otherwise, everyone looked great. While no make-up designer was credited, I'd like to point out the excellent aging on both Sparks and Davies, a perfect balance for the character and closeness of the audience.

While not the most action-packed thing in the world, if you're looking for great acting, and a quality production by folks who know what they are doing, you've got a bit more time to head to the Contemporary Theatre of Dallas to catch The Last Meeting of the Knights of the White Magnolia.