A mothers love is unconditional, a mother will be there for their child even in the hardest of circumstances, a mother will follow through on their son’s last request. APPLES IN WINTER by Jennifer Fawcett is a story of the power of a mothers strength, excellently written and presented at Gremlin Theatre. As one of my favorite venues to visit in St. Paul, I love winding down the hallway to find this intimate space, the perfect setting for such a profound and emotional piece.
We enter the theatre to see a kitchen onstage- sterile and commercial- as Miriam enters and begins set’s out her supplies getting acquainted with her cooking space. She’s getting the layout down including the knife tied to the counter, it’s then the setting is clear to the audience. She is baking in a prison kitchen. Miriam, played by Angela Timberman, walks us through her process to baking her perfect apple pie, performing each step from memory like it’s second nature. As she bakes she tells the story of her son and what has led them to this moment.
Watching Timberman is like a masterclass in her craft. It was amazing how easy it was to get lost in her delivery with every so often it hitting me that she wasn’t telling her own story but performing someone else’s words. As she walks us through her story and her memories and process to baking the pie you feel every moment of the story with her, the happy memories and the painful ones she has tried to move on from. It’s a stunning performance full of emotion, heart, and raw honesty.
As more about her sons life and subsequent impact on her own, she prepares the pie and as she puts it in the oven to bake she checks the clock for the time as the pie will be served at 5pm. The clock counts up down in real time and in quiet moments of reflection the “ticking” becomes louder and echoes in the space. The unavoidable reality that time is drawing near and event though she is warned he may not actually eat it, she knows she must do this for him.
APPLES IN WINTER is a tremendous production by Gremlin Theatre with just a few more chances to see it before closing on April 7th. Tickets and information here.
Lettered in Theatre 