Photo by Carol Kassie

Mags (Ana Marie Calise), Gardner (William Mahone) and Fanny (Laura Turnbull) in Pigs Do Fly Productions’ staging of Tina Howe’s poetic play Painting Churches.

By AARON KRAUSE

Like an eager child, a septuagenarian gazes in wonder at a paper airplane in Pigs Do Fly Productions’ impressive South Florida professional mounting of Tina Howe’s moving and funny acclaimed play, Painting Churches.

At first, this may cause you to chuckle. But an undercurrent of sadness runs beneath the humor in Howe’s poetic play, a finalist for the 1984 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. And Pigs Do Fly Productions’ staging, which lasts about two hours with an intermission, conveys the piece’s heartache and humor.

This production avoids broad brush strokes on the canvas that is the stage. Indeed, under Deborah Kondelik’s thoughtful direction, the three actors portray their characters with nuance, depth, and sincerity. The performers, and the playwright, paint a bittersweet, complex portrait of family life in a home during 1980 in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood. But live theater is fleeting — that touching portrait will disappear after May 4, the production’s closing date.

Empire Stage’s tiny yet intimate space in Ft. Lauderdale is the venue where performers Ana Marie Calise, William Mahone, and Laura Turnbull are doing some of their best work. The actors create multi-dimensional characters. They seem achingly real, relatable, and likeable.

Painting Churches is Howe’s 1983 play centering on the Church family. With sensitivity, the playwright handles themes of family dynamics, the power of art, aging, memory, change, loss, and finding meaning and enjoyment in life’s fleetingness.

Gardner and Fanny Church are an elderly couple who are about to move to Cape Cod from their Beacon Hill, Boston home. Although we do not learn exactly how long they lived there, we gather that many years have passed.

In the city, life has become too complicated and expensive for the Churches. And, so, their next home will be in Cotuit, Mass., a village on Cape Cod. There, it will be “just the gulls, oysters, and us,” one of the characters says.

Of course, a move is a major life change. And Gardener’s failing memory may signal dementia or Alzheimer’s Disease. So, the Churches’ adult daughter, Mags, a painter, wants to preserve the present moment the best she can before her parents change beyond recognition.

As Mags tries to get her parents to pose, the three characters confront their past, their regrets, and time’s unavoidable passage.

Howe structured the piece as a series of intimate, often humorous, and emotionally-charged scenes. These moments form a tender portrait of a family dealing with the shifting dynamics of aging and memory. The action switches between comedy and poignancy (sometimes they merge) as Mags tries to preserve her parents’ image through her art, while they wrestle with change.

While Mags uses paint, Howe paints with words. She creates poetic language that can be funny but also heartbreaking. There is something Chekhovian about her work, but it also calls to mind playwrights such as Neil Simon.

“I don’t want to just take a picture of you two,” Mags tells her parents. “I want to capture you – your essence, your soul I want to preserve something of you. Not just the outside.”

Early on, it becomes obvious that Fanny and Gardner truly love each other. But they are also so familiar with each other that they can annoy the heck out of each other.

Meanwhile, Mags is the prodigal child who returns home after an absence. She has been living away from her parents in New York City, pursuing a career as an artist and art educator. A physical and emotional distance has separated Mags and her parents, and her return represents an effort at reconciliation. Also, her return forces all three characters to confront their past and work through what is separating them emotionally.

Mags is not only dealing with her relationship with her parents, but her career and artistic challenges. She is a young artist still finding her way in the art world, although she has arrived with great news regarding her career. It marks a significant milestone and potentially paves the way for greater opportunities. Understandably, Mags is anxious to tell her parents.

But Mags is not the only artist in the family. Gardner is a poet whose best days are behind him. He is losing his mental faculties, and can no longer write poetry the way he once did. According to his wife, he is trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to write criticism.

While he may not be the poet he once was, Gardner can still express himself clearly and elegantly.

Mahone, with a quiet dignity and emotional openness, disappears into Gardner. The performer, an actor who has worked in England, New York, Florida, regional theater, summer stock, and on screen, is impressively natural as Gardner.

At different times, such as when he recites poetry, Mahone lends the character an eloquence that suggests an educated, cultured man. Indeed, with whitish hair, dark eyes behind black-framed glasses and sporting a grey suit, Mahone’s Gardner resembles a scholar. Mahone also imbues Gardner with an eager-to-please demeanor, and a loving nature. Obviously, he adores his wife and daughter. But he also grows believably frustrated, such as when he drops papers due to his clumsiness. A red complexion dots the performer’s skin, which accentuates feelings such as anger and embarrassment. Certainly, it must be embarrassing to hear a family member suggest that daddy needs diapers, a reference to Gardner’s incontinence. Also, there is a childlike quality to Mahone’s Gardner, especially evident when he marvels at a paper airplane.

As Mahone plays Gardner, this is a man trying to hang on to his dignity and pride. His study, where mounds of books rest, means a lot to him, and he does not appreciate Fanny belittling the study, which can symbolize his life’s work.

Turnbull, an award-winning actor whom South Florida audiences will recognize from her many local stage appearances, deftly embodies Fanny. Often, convincing expressions of disgust and annoyance form on her face, suggesting a practical, high-strung, strong-willed woman. She possesses a quick wit and a sharp voice. Sometimes, she can seem hostile. But Turnbull also projects a fun-loving personality, and a zest for life that is contagious. You sense that she truly enjoys, for instance, her regular cocktail hour with her hubby of many years (we never learn exactly how long the couple have been married).

As Mags, Calise, a versatile theater artist, also possesses a quick wit. However, it is more subtle than her mom’s sometimes acerbic humor.

As Calise portrays her, this intellectually sharp young woman is obviously ambitious, deeply passionate, and independent. While Calise’s Mags is often confident, the performer also reveals her character’s desire for validation. In addition, we deeply sense Mags’ vulnerability and emotional pain when she observes her father faltering before her wide, frightened eyes. Calise has apparently internalized this role to the point that believably tears up when she becomes emotional.

Unquestionably, Calise makes us root for Mags to complete her portrait of her parents. It is not just an art project; it is a symbolic act of preservation and an attempt at reconciliation.

The actors perform on scenic designer Ardean Landhuis’s elegant and detailed rendering of the Churches home. The contrast between black walls and white set pieces creates a vivid metaphor for life’s bright and dark times.

Preston Bircher’s realistic lighting, David Hart’s crisp sound design, and the uncredited costume design also lend the production taste.

Howe, (1937-2023) was a playwright who beautifully blended the humor and heartache of her multi-dimensional female characters. In Painting Churches, Howe “reminds us that even in the face of loss or impending change, there is room for wit and tenderness,” Kondelik wrote in the program. I would go further to say that during dark times, humor is necessary to remain sane in an increasingly insane world.

While Howe’s play takes place in 1980, it is far from a museum piece. We are living during a time when the world’s population is quickly aging. In fact, projections indicate a doubling of the 65 and older group over the next few decades. With that in mind, a play about aging adults can make us wonder what options for care will be available for senior citizens in the coming years.

Speaking of age, Pigs Do Fly Productions’ title is symbolic. The company’s mission is to challenge stereotypes about aging and showcase the vibrant lives of individuals over 50. People often use the phrase “when pigs fly” to signify something impossible. By adopting it, the company affirms that older adults are not just surviving, but thriving. Truly, age is no barrier to vitality, creativity, and achievement.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Pigs Do Fly Productions’ mounting of Tina Howe’s play, Painting Churches.

WHEN: Through Sunday. Performances are at 8 p.m. Friday, and 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

WHERE: Empire Stage, 1140 N. Flagler Drive in Ft. Lauderdale.

TICKETS: $45. Use the code LOVE for $6 off regularly priced tickets. Call (954) 678-1496 or go to www.pigsdoflyproductions.com.