![]() ![]() Ruth (Chloe Kolman ’07) deals with the toxic environment by chasing boys and siding with her teachers, who, as former classmates of Beatrice, denounce her by referring to her as “Betty the Loon” around the school lounges. Convinced that life has passed her by, Beatrice spends her time lamenting the loss of her “dancer’s legs” to her daughters and generally promoting an acidic atmosphere. ![]() ![]() The script, which earned Zindel a Pulitzer Prize in drama in 1971, tells the story of the three Hunsdorfer women - and one invalid.īeatrice (Julie Whitesell ’05) spends most of the play accoutered for bed lounging in a robe and sponge curlers and brandishing a cigarette, she bitterly spits venomous remarks at her two daughters, Matilda and Ruth, and frequently detains Matilda from school so she can perform banal chores. “The Effect of Gamma Rays,” performed in the somewhat claustrophobic Nick Chapel, features a small cast and relatively few scene changes. ![]() As for the play itself, a top-notch cast and compelling performances do little to stem the soporific effect of the banal text on audience members. The impact of radiation on plant seeds, as alluded to in the title of Paul Zindel’s “The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds,” is surprisingly positive. ![]()
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