by Jana Lillie

Friday night, I went to the Dorset Theatre Festival see the preview of Misery, the play by William Goldman, based on the book of the same name by Stephen King.

Executive Director Will Rucker, informed us that this would be the first full run-through of the play. He added if anything went wrong it would be fixed right on the spot. As far as I am concerned nothing went wrong with this performance. 

Misery is a classic, on the ride up my friend and I speculated how they would achieve some fairly famous scenes. Some were better than we could have hoped for, and others were even better. I am torn between talking about the actors and the set because both deserve to be talked about. 

Dan Butler, playing injured, stranded Paul Sheldon was so focused, I am not sure he even relaxed the few times he was not on stage. You know an actor is good, when he fools you and Annie Wilkes at the same time. From the moment he opened his eyes, he was Paul, and you grew to know who Paul was.

I never doubted for a minute that Kelly McAndrew, as Annie, was Paul Sheldon’s biggest fan. There were a few moments where Annie seemed almost too perky, but her shifts into nagging, arguing, and threatening were sometimes fun and at other times terrifying. I think a great suspense play has to have laughs, genuine and tension-breaking, and the audience experienced both. 

Greg Stuhr’s Sheriff Buster seemed instantly too innocent to be Paul’s salvation. Friendly and trusting I inwardly wanted him to run far from the increasingly dangerous Annie Wilkes. Stuhr owns my second favorite scene in the play, which I won’t spoil but watch for it.

Director Jackson Gay has delivered a play I have no need to compare to the movie, for it owns its space in the theater and excels where it seems almost too big of a task. Gray gave her actors breath to make Paul and Annie all their own.  

The set was a moving part of this show, with four rooms set to move with the help of the backstage crew. Walking in, I was instantly excited about the set. I knew it had to rotate, and I couldn’t wait to see how! Set designer Riw Rakkulchon, created the most amazing fourth actor in the play – the set is every bit a part of the tension, the suffering, the suspense. There is not a single superfluous inch in the set and it’s dressing.

The lighting is at times, dreary, sometimes stark, and matches, and enhances each scene. Joey Moro had the challenging task of all great suspense movies, of how to show enough without being too dark or too bright, and he achieved that balance. The sound by Daniel Baker – another intricate part of any good suspense – gave us sweet music and booming thunder. I am a sucker for a good bolt lightning and clap of thunder, and Moro and Baker made me flinch every time. The costumes by Fabian Fidel Aguilar made perfect sense, which may not sound like a booming compliment but it is. The layers of Annie’s clothing, down to the brown shoes, looked exactly like what this character would wear. 

There are warnings about blood, language, and everything else that goes along with a good suspense play from the mind of Stephen King. Here is my warning, don’t miss Misery. My favorite scene in this play is worth the price of admission alone.

The Dorset Theatre Festival production of Misery, written by William Goldman from the novel by Stephen King, and directed by Jackson Gay, runs June 23 through July 8, 2023, at the Dorset Playhouse, 104 Cheney Road in Dorset VT. CAST: Dan Butler as Paul Sheldon, Kelly McAndrew as Annie Wilkes, and Greg Stuhr as Sheriff Buster. Scenic designer Riw Rakkulchon, costume designer Fabian Fidel Aguilar, lighting designer Joey Moro, sound designer Daniel Baker/Broken Chord, fight director Rod Kinter, vocal coach is Walton Wilson, casting director Judy Bowman, CSA, and Avery Trunko is the production stage manager. 

The box office may be reached by calling (802) 867-2223 ext. 101, Wednesday through Friday, 12 – 4 pm. For more information, or to purchase subscriptions and tickets online, visit www.dorsettheatrefestival.org.