THEATER REVIEW

Tom Titus

Life for America’s pioneer women wasn’t all “Little House on the

Prairie.” Those who forged west and helped to settle the heartland

endured enormous hardships, relieved only by the bonding experience known

as quilting.

Playwright Molly Newman and composer Barbara Damashek paid tribute to

these brave and determined souls in their musical “Quilters,” which has

become a hardy perennial on the local musical theater scene. It’s now

enjoying a sprightly and sparkling revival at Costa Mesa’s Vanguard

University.

The characters forming the core of the story are an aging mother and

her six daughters, but that’s only a starting point. In true ensemble

fashion, each actress embodies a number of other personalities -- male

and female alike -- during the course of the show.

Director Susan K. Berkompas delivers a “Quilters” that captures the

heart early on and tightens its grip with each succeeding segment. Her

splendid cast performs as a well-drilled unit, while allowing ample

opportunity for individual excellence.

These moments come when the show focuses on a particular highlight

from a character’s life, and in the Vanguard production, two actresses

shine particularly brightly in this regard.

Heaven Joy Peabody is especially impressive as a teenage girl

undergoing full-immersion baptism in a wordless exercise of underwater

interpretation, and later excels in her solo “Quiltin’ and Dreamin’.”

Emily Maier breaks up the house with her malicious tribute to the

“Sunbonnet Sue” quilt, then renders a gripping scene as a young girl

learning of her adoption.

Holly Richardson, who also serves as vocal music director, impresses

as the matriarch of the clan, whose three solos punctuate the second act,

while Mary House lightens the proceedings with the “Cornelia Song,” about

a young girl’s homemade rag doll.

Amy Maier and Urissa Ross headline the “Windmill” number, a

beautifully choreographed (by Berkompas and Toni Bosch) piece paying

tribute to a prairie lifeline. Louise Rawson completes the cast in a

variety of roles, most significantly the mother of a young man who’s

captured a number of feminine hearts.

Backed by a fine six-piece combo, the quilters of “Quilters” play out

their lives with flourish and determination, confronting the hard times

and unimaginable privation while reveling in the joy of family and

community.

The relatively small thrust stage of the college’s Lyceum Theater has

been expanded for “Quilters,” offering set designer Tim Mueller and

technical director Adam Genzink a broader canvas on which to work. Dan

Volonte’s lighting effects, particularly in the imaginatively staged fire

segment, are impressive, and Lia Hansen’s pioneer-era costumes are

meticulously fashioned.

“Quilters” is a collection of stories -- many taken from actual

pioneer diaries -- that mesh beautifully into a tribute to the women who

helped pave the road west. It’s an emotionally uplifting experience at

Vanguard University.

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His reviews

appear Thursdays and Saturdays.

FYI

* WHAT: “Quilters”

* WHERE: Vanguard University’s Lyceum Theater, 55 Fair Drive, Costa

Mesa

* WHEN: Closing performances 8 p.m. today through Saturday and 2 p.m.

Sunday

* COST: $15

* PHONE: (714) 668-6145