Still

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Lia Romeo’s bittersweet Still about second chances in love has returned with a new cast and a new venue but the mainly same production values. Replacing Jayne Atkinson and Tim Daly are Melissa Gilbert (Little House on the Prairie; The Miracle Worker) and Mark Moses (Desperate Housewives; Mad Men) now appearing at the Sheen Center for Thought and Culture. Both actors best known for their television roles are very charming stage company, and playwright Romeo has a fine ear for the way people speak.  The problem with this short play is we don’t learn that much about the characters.

Now in their sixties, Helen and Mark were college sweethearts who went their separate ways over a disagreement. Not having seen each other for years, Mark, now a successful lawyer, invites Helen, a bestselling published novelist, for a drink at his hotel when he finds himself in her hometown of Baltimore. They catch up on what has happened to them since the last meet at either a party Helen gave or when they met for coffee after that: he has been divorced from Louise after 29 years of marriage, and Helen has had her fifth novel published. They speak of friends they had shared in the past and what has happened to them since. The spark is still there and Mark invites Helen up to his room.

Helen reveals to Mark that she has an illness that might be fatal and that her body is no longer the same as when they were together. This does not deter Mark who wants to pick up where they left off and he is willing to stand by her in her illness. However, he has an ulterior motive for getting together with Helen at this time, aside from the fact he is now single. He is planning on running for Congress as a moderate Republican, and he wants her blessing. However, Helen who knew him when he was still a liberal Democrat is shocked at this reversal. But what is really on the table is the secret they share from their college days which if it were to reach the press would put an end to his political chances. As it happens, Helen has just started what may be her last novel and it concerns those very details that Mark wishes to keep quiet. Will Helen suppress the story? And will she see him again now that he stands for almost everything of which she disapproves?

Although the play seems a bit dated now speaking as supposition political events that have already happened, Helen and Mark’s story is engrossing and well written. It is the rare play to explore romantic second chances for senior citizens and it is not only a beautiful love story but also romantic. Unfortunately, the couple is made to continue discussing the few topics over and over, so the play feels like it goes round and round. It is as though the author can’t think of anything else two people would discuss after many years apart. It is not a game-stopper but it is very noticeable.

Adrienne Campbell-Holt’s direction is urbane and polished creating a genial atmosphere even though the meeting between Helen and Mark eventually sours. Gilbert whose most recent New York credit was as Gretta in the Irish Repertory Company’s site-specific production of James Joyce’s The Dead 1904, has an assured stage presence and seems very comfortable as Helen though she is not allowed to reveal too much of her life. Still as beautiful as ever she has no trouble playing an older woman who is reticent about her life but has lived as she has wanted to. Moses makes a charming leading man who also plays his cards close to his vest. He is an excellent adversary opposite Gilbert who doesn’t let him get away with anything even though much is unspoken.

The production team has created a refined and elegant environment. While the designers are the same, Barbara A. Bell has changed Helen’s costume to a chic red paisley top and red silk pants, while Mark remains in a brown tweed jacket, blue button-down shirt and black slacks. Alexander Woodward’s two settings remain the same: a corner of a contemporary hotel bar decorated with yellow and green bottles on the wall and brown leather arm chairs, and a pleasant though generic hotel bedroom. The appropriate sound design by Hidenori Nakajo allows us to hear in the background the laughter and glasses clinking of other guests.  The lighting by Reza Behjat is suitable for the moodiness of the bar-lounge and brightness of the hotel room.

Melissa Gilbert and Mark Moses make Lia Romeo’s Still both a pleasant evening in the theater and a bittersweet encounter as a couple who discover that what separated them 30 years ago is still a problem. A believable couple who have not seen each other for years but who still have feelings for each other, Gilbert and Moses are endearing as people who have flaws but are very human. This is the rare comedy-drama to make senior citizens the leading characters but both performers are in such good shape that they could be playing younger.

Still (through March 3, 2025)

The Colt Coeur Production

The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture’s Loreto Theatre, 18 Bleecker Street, in Manhattan

For tickets, 212-219-3132 or visit http://www.SheenCenter.org

Running time: 75 minutes without an intermission