‘Dead Certain’ gets deft rendition Writer says version was best he’s seen

If a housebound woman invites a vigorous young actor to her home for an acting lesson, you have to think something is amiss when she pulls out not one, but two guns as props. For some, that would be the first step toward the closest exit. But for playwright Marcus Lloyd, it doesn’t even come close to laying a hand on the doorknob.

“Dead Certain,” Lloyd’s intrepid thriller, presented by Penobscot Theatre through Sunday at the Opera House in Bangor, puts Michael the actor in the house alone with Elizabeth, a fatalistic fan in a wheelchair. She’s after more than just a few tips on elocution. In fact, the former dancer ends up taking method acting to a whole new level. The result is “Wait Until Dark” meets “Fatal Attraction” – with an English accent.

And while the English accents are not the strongest part of this show, directed by Mark Torres, they detract very little from the expert stage work of Rita Rehn and Matt Edwards. Rehn, in particular, has a commanding presence that ranges from charming to monstrous. Part of this is the extraordinary modulation in her voice. She can sound like an English lady or a possessed demon, and the transition is entirely believable.

Edwards is breezy as Michael and while he doesn’t exactly inspire sympathy for the dangerous position he falls into as if through a trap door, he manages to draw the audience along as the seams of his teaching assignment unravel.

Michael Reidy, the set designer, is the third star of this show. His sophisticated version of a well-off theater groupie’s house – which crumbles nicely as the bullets start to fly – proves that Reidy, a veteran designer at Penobscot Theatre, is a master builder with the heart of an artist. Paired with Lynne Chase’s lighting and costumes by Ginger Phelps and Gabriella D’Italia, the look of the show indicates a cooperative creative team brimming with talent.

Over the weekend, Lloyd, who lives in London, was in the audience for performances and post-show discussions. On opening night, he applauded the actors for presenting what he called “the best version of the play” he has ever seen. (Published in 1999, “Dead Certain” has been produced two other times in America.)

Given the sophistication of the acting, it’s easy to see why Lloyd would admire Penobscot’s production. Except for some scenes that lagged, the show reinforces Torres’ knack for suspense.

The philosophical underpinnings of Lloyd’s work are about the control a person has in any given situation. Are we in charge of our own decisions or are we simply puppets in scripts written by others? This is never overtly addressed in the intellectual plot, but it runs through the heated exchanges between Michael, whose discomfort increases with every passing minute, and Elizabeth, whose revenge tactics throw into question the nature of human destiny. Which of them is in control?

It’s hard to be dead certain. But you can be certain in this play that someone will end up dead.

Penobscot Theatre will present “Dead Certain,” by Marcus Lloyd April 28-May 2 at the Opera House on Main Street in Bangor. For information, call 942-3333. Alicia Ansteadcan be reached at 990-8266 and aanstead@bangordailynews.net.