By Mitchel Clow '13
When Pygmalion and Sex and the City meet halfway, Teresa Rebeck’s Spike Heels is born.
The Siena production was an exciting, fast paced play. Set in Boston during the 1990s, Spike Heels follows the lives of four friends who date each other. The Pygmailion aspect of the show is of the saucy protagonist Gerogie’s learning to be a secretary from a sleazy lawyer.
What set this production apart from Siena’s other plays was the cast. New faces Alexis Benedetti ’14 and Nicholas Ramundo ’14 shone brightly as the leads. The chemistry between the two was unmistakable.
Veteran Stage III actors Shayne Peris ’15 and Jennifer Cullen ’13 played their secondary roles with sincerity. Peris managed to yet again transform himself into a drastically different archetype. Cullen brought her usual charm and wit to her ex-girlfriend from Hell role.
The set was a great piece to watch the characters interact. Fights often spanned the length of the studio room, giving realistic depth to the room’s blank walls and pillared ceiling.
Costumes served their purpose, for they were somewhat flashy without being distracting. The titled “spike heels” were operated masterfully by the unbending power of Benedetti’s strut.
While three of the characters spoke base American English, Benedetti had the challenge of speaking in an authentic-as-you-can-in-an-upstate-New-York-play Bostonian accent. Very few flaws trickled into her speech. All of the correct “aw’s” and “ay’s” plugged into even the quickest jabs.
The Creative Arts department does an amazing job of selecting plays that will both intrigue and entertain its audiences. Spike Heels is no exception. The play proved that, with a small set and powerful actors, great art can be achieved.
Photo courtesy of The Creative Arts Department
