‘Hurricane Diane' turns an updated Greek god loose on New Jersey housewives at Hartford Stage

Yahoo

2 days ago

In Greek mythology, Dionysus is the god who oversees vegetables and fruit, particularly the making of wine from grapes, and thus is also connected to ecstatic partying. Dionsysus is also the god of theater.
In Madeleine George's play 'Hurricane Diane,' running at Hartford Stage June 5-29, Dionysus becomes Diane, a landscaping expert with an environmentalist streak seeking to change the destiny of humankind by wreaking a little havoc in New Jersey.
The play is having a moment. Over a dozen productions of 'Hurricane Diane' have happened, or are scheduled to happen, in the U.S. and Canada this year. The script has been around since 2017, when it had its world premiere at Two River Theater in New Jersey. There was a well-received off-Broadway production at New York Theatre Workshop, then regional theaters and college theaters around the country embraced it. TheaterWorks Hartford had the script on its shortlist for a recent season but didn't end up doing it, making Hartford Stage's production of 'Hurricane Diane' its Connecticut premiere.
Other plays by George, who grew up in Amherst, Massachusetts and now lives in New York City, include 'The (curious case of the) Watson Intelligence,' 'The Sore Loser' and 'Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England.' George is a writer and executive story editor of the TV series 'Only Murders in the Building.' She is married to Lisa Kron, also a playwright, who is known to Hartford theatergoers for the musical 'Fun Home,' done by TheaterWorks Hartford in 2023 and '2.5 Minute Ride,' done at Hartford Stage in 2002 and 2024. Last year's '2.5 Minute Ride' was directed by Hartford Stage associate artistic director Zoë Golub-Sass, who is now directing 'Hurricane Diane.'
The blustery title role in 'Hurricane Diane' is played by Bernadette Sefic, who grew up in Colorado, studied theater (mainly the Elizabethan variety) in California and is thoroughly enjoying their first visit to Connecticut.
'I had not done this play before and I had not seen it, but I had read it in grad school,' they said. 'Now I'm an actor living in New York but I went to the University of San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre. My resume is 90% Shakespeare.'
Sefic sees their casting as the modern embodiment of a Greek god as karmic. 'When I was offered this role I was in Greece. I went to see the Theatre of Dionysus in Athens. I've gone back to the writings about Dionysus and whatnot. There are a lot of different versions.'
'Hurrican Diane,' Sefic said, is 'very much a modern contemporary comedy. It hints at ancient Greek plays, but it doesn't live there. There are moments where it gets surreal. The lighting designer and the sound designer, who also composed the music for this, are creating awesome effects.'
In terms of style, the script has a big opening monologue for Diane, just as the Greek tragedy 'The Bacchae' by Euripides opens with a big monologue for Dionysus, but in a much more open manner.
'There's a lot of direct address to the audience,' Sefic said. 'To say that she is friendly with the audience is kind of an understatement. But while Diane talks directly to the audience a lot, 'The Women' don't see the audience at all — for them there's this strong fourth wall.'
'The Women' whom Sefic referred to, are the modern equivalent of the women in Euripides' 'The Bacchae.' George makes them a group of New Jersey housewives who spend most of their time together in each others' kitchens.
'They're all unhappy in their lives,' Sefic said. 'We see the response of these four women receiving this energy in their lives. Madeleine George writes that they accept Diane because she is bringing in the natural world.'
Sefic said 'The Women' — played at Hartford Stage by Katya Campbell (as Carol), Christina DeCicco (Pam), Alyse Alan Louis (Beth) and Sharina Martin (Renee) — 'are so funny. I feel like I'm running a marathon just to keep up with them. This play has such a range of emotions. It's scary, erotic, terrifying, angry … and also funny, amazing and awe-inspiring. It stays funny until the very end, even with the serious parts.'
Sefic identifies as non-binary, uses they/them pronouns and has played both male and female roles in the Shakespeare plays that make up the bulk of her acting resume. How does she see Diane in this play?
'Dionysus, who was very into androgyny, comes to Earth as a butch lesbian. She's a masculine person who doesn't identify as male. She uses she/her pronouns.'
'Hurricane Diane' is written for diverse audiences, yet 'it can be a very queer show and I'm happy that we're doing it during Pride Month,' Sefic said.
Above all, the actor said, 'this is a contemporary comedy about the Greek god Dionysus coming to modern day New Jersey and saving the world by seducing some disgruntled New Jersey housewives.'
'Hurricane Diane,' directed by Zoë Golub-Sass, runs June 5-29 at Hartford Stage, 50 Church St., Hartford. Performances are Wednesdays through Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 and 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. There are added Tuesday performances on June 10 and 24 at 7:30 p.m. and no Saturday matinee on June 7. $20-$105. hartfordstage.org.