Emily

Photo: Firebone Theatre

This modestly diverting play partially succeeds in bringing Emily Dickinson to life, but less through the script's conception or realization than through the lead performance, a finely calibrated, unsentimental yet touching portrayal of the poet by Elizabeth A. Davis, and the poetry itself. In spite of the graceful cast and their lush costumes, director Steve Day doesn't develop much of interest to look at on stage; the slow pace sometimes sinks into ennui rather than expanding into stateliness. I can't deny, though, that Chris Cragin's script and Ms. Davis's sweet recitations of some of the poet's well-known works succeeded in sending me home to crack open my copy of Emily Dickinson's Collected Poems. Read the full review.