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Reviews

'Proof' adds up to powerful entertainment
- By Cheryl Thornburg, Las Cruces Sun News

Rachel Space really proves herself as an actress in No Strings Theatre's season opener, 'Proof.' David Auburn's Tony and Pulitzer award-winning script are just the platform she's needed to show the depth of her talent.

Space plays Catherine, the daughter of a mathematical genius who has subsequently slipped into madness. Catherine too is gifted, and worries about her own fate and Space delivers such poignant, intimate glimpses of Catherine's dilemma that the audience is easily caught up in her world.

Space doesn't create this magic alone, however. She is flanked by the gripping performance of Joe Denk as her father, and solid performances from Scott Lunsford as her eventual suitor and K.C. Cherkasky as her sister.

Lunsford is right-on as the bright graduate student, whose gifts do not match his mentor, Rachel's father, or Rachel's.

Cherkasky has tough shoes to fill - those of Rachel's rigid and bitter older sister - but she does it with style.

Ceil Herman directed this production and once again she has just found the right people to bring 'Proof' to life.

Peter Herman has gone above and beyond on the set for this show. Getting away from previous minimalist sets, he has created a beautiful, homey back-porch setting with exquisite details in the windows and trim. He also designed the lighting for the show.

Jeanne Luper designed the costumes, creating just the right images for the casual college students and more formal, controlling older sister.

Barbara Alford designed the props, and Nancy Cahill served as stage manager.

"PROOF" PERFECT! What Great Theatre Is Meant To Be

- By Gerald M. Kane, Las Cruces Bulletin [ Sept. 19, 2003 ]

OK... let's be honest. I have always hated math. I have a hard time balancing my checkbook. My wife writes all the checks in our family. I never understood formulas. I never could get by a college math course without help.

And yet, I can't begin to tell you how much I adored the final dress rehearsal of "Proof," the current production on the stage of the Black Box Theatre which I was privileged to see last Thursday evening.
"Proof" may be a play all about mathematics and mathematicians, but it is much more than that. I am still twirling the play's many messages and life lessons around in my mind. I am especially haunted by Rachel Space's electric and enigmatic portrayal of a grieving, disturbed, yet talented daughter of a severely disturbed college professor.

You don't need to get to the end of this review to have me tell you to go! Put down your "Bulletin" now, and head over to your computer or telephone and make reservations for "Proof." I assure you that this play will be a sell-out, and you will be sorry if you miss it.

David Auburn's Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning play, is one of the most well-devised pieces of drama it has been my privilege to see in years. This artfully crafted work presents us with the hypothesis that genius as exemplified in the field of mathematics and mental illness are linked.
To share the plot in this review would take away from your enjoyment of seeing "Proof." Suffice to say the complexities of the interrelationships between a mathematics professor at the University of Chicago, his two daughters and one of his students make the basis of a remarkable evening of theatre at its best.

Constructed like a mathematical problem, there are disruptions in the play's time line. Flashbacks and sudden scene shifts add to the sense of suspense and uncertainly which evolves.
As I think about it, "Proof" might be considered to be a first cousin to "A Beautiful Mind," the Academy Award winning film about mathematician John Nash. When seen side by side, Nash, together with "Proof's" central figure Catherine, and her father, Robert all precariously teeter on the ledge between stability and instability, sanity and insanity. Some regain balance, others fall.
While its subject matter is enmeshed in mathematics, this is far from a "formula play." Emotions flow, tensions build and almost every human emotion is grappled with. The language is at time earthy and strong, yet never gratuitous.

The current production, carefully directed by NSTC's Artistic Director, Ceil Herman brings out the finest nuances from a gifted ensemble cast. In addition to Space, Joe Denk tugs at our heart as Catherine's father. KC Cherkasky has the sharpness needed to irritate us as Catherine's sister, and Scott Lunsford brings warmth and skill to the role of Catherine's complex love interest.
In sum, (great word for a play about math!) ... this production adds up to a magnificent evening of theatre. You won't want to miss it.

Performances of "Proof" are at the Black Box Theatre, 430 N Downtown Mall, Las Cruces on Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 p.m., Thursdays, September 18 and October 2 at 7:00 and Sundays, September 21 and October 5 at 2:30 p.m.

On September 18,19, 20 and October 2 and 4, performances will be preceded by forty-five minutes of music provided by The Sound of Mesilla Valley Woodwind Quintet in the Black Box Theatre Courtyard.
Due to the Whole Enchilada Festival, performances will not be presented the weekend of Sept. 26-28.

Seating

No seating plan has been posted.