Today: Arclight Theatre's Four Women & a Waitress

Today, we caught the final performance of Four Women & a Waitress at the Arclight Theatre which resides in the basement of Blessed Sacrement Church on 71st Street between Columbus and Broadway on the Upper West Side. Four Women & A Waitress was comprised of two one-act plays, the first Rosemary with Ginger by Edward Allan Baker and the second The Stronger by August Strindberg. Rosemary with Ginger was the story of two sisters, both down on her luck, one dealing with circumstances beyond her control, the other not dealing with alcoholism. The actresses, Pamela Shaw and Aria Alpert, were interesting, but the play is a crass characature of south Jersey types. They chewed up the scenery but were entertaining. The Stronger was lovely but all too brief. Francesca Faridany played a wife who realizes that her husband has been cheating with her friend played by Wendy Hill. Remarkably, Wendy Hill never uttered a single line but spoke volumes with extraordinary facial expressions. Francesca has beautiful presence and I could feel the heartbreak at her moment of realization. The entire performance lasted only an hour. It was a perfect late Sunday afternoon diversion.