Because of Cain

Community Actors Theater's current production is Because of Cain by local playwright Earl Hamilton, Jr. Two old buddies, Peter (Joseph Georges) and Keith (Andrew Goularte), meet after an absence of thirty years. Just why is Peter visiting Keith? Do they have anything in common anymore?

Director Jennie Hamilton, who also designed the lighting and dressed the set, takes on a difficult assignment. A majority of the script has Peter and Keith talking; first remembrances of things past and, finally, into the meat of Peter's visit. Add that Keith is bound to his chair, able to walk only with the aid of a cane.

Yolanda Miller plays Keith's maid, Marla. As in much of this play, we find that some seeming truths are actually illusions. Miller, who came into the play shortly before opening, is a dynamo of energy. Her phone conversations, in a couple of scenes, are action packed. Her changing emotions are expressed with her face and effective body language. In another scene she creates an animated dialogues between two Barbie-like dolls. As her character is revealed, Miller's character takes on more complexity.

I wish the playwright had written just one more scene for Sherri (Theresa Hunziker). Sherri, a nurse, is a white neighbor of Keith and Marla. She is all smiles and flirtatious upon meeting Peter, who is also white. Her vocation comes into play in Act II.

Keith has had a highly successful career and is living the good life, or so it seems. There are, however, demons and fears. He is cursed with a bad leg. This places a serious burden on any director. He can walk only with a cane, which is revealed late in the play. With all the other late developments, his infirmity could be revealed earlier, thus opening up the play for more mobility.

Peter, seemingly out of courtesy to Keith, sits much of the first act. Hamilton, as set dresser, populated the set with much to intrigue a visitor. Thus, the play is static for a long time, but didn't have to be. As the script moves from pleasantries to Peter's mission, Georges' and Goularte's passions become evident. Peter's mission is financial help as he is in desperate need of a serious amount of money.

Because of Cain is a work in progress. The premise of the story is quite interesting, but the first act takes too long to get to the point. That said, the masking of what is real and what is not is extremely well done.

The second act is almost two fast. So much is revealed about the characters, it is almost too much to comprehend in just a few minutes. There is a very short, but extremely important, third act – more an epilogue than an act.