Photo by Michael Brosilow
Heidi Armbruster in Next Act Theatre's ‘Scarecrow’
Heidi Armbruster in Next Act Theatre's ‘Scarecrow’
Heidi Armbruster is actor and playwright in her own one-person show, Scarecrow, now running at Next Act Theatre. She’s also a multi-talented fireball of energy playing multiple characters in her poignant, autobiographical tale of moving back to her father’s small dairy farm in rural Wisconsin as he lay slowly dying of cancer.
What makes Scarecrow so riveting to watch is not only Armbruster’s stellar performance playing a range of characters; an eight-year old to her own father. It’s also how real and authentic her writing is and how she’s lived through the experiences of pain, loss and ultimately, resilience. Life does go on, but, like the rest of us, life has its many unexpected twist and turns. And therein lies the wonderful storytelling which engages us throughout her journey.
Working as an actress in New York City, Heidi has bucked the traditional (read: expected) way of life of her siblings, high school friends, community. Unmarried with no children at 44, she does TV commercials ironically playing various “moms”. And then there’s her writing. “You call two plays a career?” as she portrays her “father’s” snippy response.
But Heidi makes the best of the situation and makes the process of her father’s death easy to follow as she describes it in the 33 days until his passing. Never to return home again.
As grim as all this sounds, there’s an inherent joy in the writing and arc of the storyline. Armbruster escapes into her own “Hallmark Christmas movies,” playing on the TV in the “secret” family lounge down the hall from her father’s hospital room.
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There, she becomes the heroine of her own happy fantasies of love and romance. One film involves an imagined sexy cancer patient. The Hallmark movie title? Cancer for Christmas. These very funny episodes dot the 85-minute (no intermission) production and show the depth of her acting range and ability to conjure characters in a flash. One-actor shows are a tricky business, especially to keep an audience engaged. Armbruster draws us in and keeps us right next to her as we can all relate to her situation in one way or another.
Director Laura Gordon, once again, demonstrates her mastery of an intimate drama, making the actor’s words and performance feel as natural and authentic as a clear starry night sky. There is an inherent peace and calm underlying Scarecrow; this actor’s inner strength pouring through in little ways like trying to grow chives on her father’s land, to the idyllic set design of rural Wisconsin. Designer Jason Fassl has created a simple set of the farm, with backdrops bathed in soothing muted tones of color, evoking an endless horizon that goes on forever.
Heidi shows us that you can indeed go home again. But of course, nothing’s ever the same as it once was. Nor can it be. And as one very famous character once said, “... there’s no place like home, “especially when “home” gives us a sense of belonging. That is, until we’re ready to move on.
Scarecrow runs through March 17 at Next Act Theatre, 255 S. Water St. Running time: one hour, 25 minutes with no intermission. For more information, call 414-278-0765 or visit nextact.org.
