by Richard Young, Publisher & Content Manager, The Beat Magazine
If you were one of the fortunate people who took time off from watching the Blue Jays World Series games to attend Odesa Company’s all too short four-day run of Misery at the Princess Ave Playhouse in St. Thomas, lucky you. If you didn’t, pity.
Produced by Laura Williams and co-directed by Chris and Scott Smalley, the tautly staged thriller based on the Stephen King novel was a delight and filled with tension from beginning to end.
The story is familiar. Paul Sheldon, a well-known author of a series of highly successful Misery romance novels, wakes up to find himself severely injured and confined to a bed with no recollection of how he got there. He discovers he was badly hurt in a car accident and is now convalescing in the remote home of Annie Wilkes, a former nurse who claims to be his biggest fan. Grateful and flattered at first, Paul gradually realizes that he is being held prisoner by his menacing and increasingly violent caregiver.
To be sure, the Princess Ave Playhouse was the ideal venue for the Odesa Company’s production. Small and intimate, it gave audience members a front-row seat to the action on stage and made them feel that they were in the cramped cabin with the play’s protagonists.
The play’s leads were both outstanding.
(Pictured: Helen Wrack-Adams as Annie. Photo Credit: Ross Davidson)
Helen Wrack-Adams shone as the physically dominating and sadistic Annie who turned on a dime throughout the play. One moment she was affectionate and fawning, the next minute she was taking a mallet to Paul’s ankles. Her increasing menace was definitely felt by the audience who, like Paul, dreaded each time she entered the bedroom.
As Paul, Andrew Dodd spent much of his time on stage in bed or in a wheelchair. He deftly conveyed his character’s gradual realization that he was being held captive by a seriously deranged God-fearing, moral absolutist. The scene in which he cast himself out of bed and crawled across the floor in an attempt to escape was so convincing that members of the audience were wincing in pain, including this writer!
(Pictured: Andrew Dodd as Paul. Photo Credit: Ross Davidson)
Patrick Hoffer, as Buster, the small-town sheriff and Paul’s would-be rescuer, breaks up the tension with his brief appearances on stage. Unfortunately, he ended up being shot by Annie for his efforts.
(Pictured: Patrick Hoffer as Sheriff Buster. Photo Credit: Ross Davidson)
The final physical altercation between Paul and Annie was startingly realistic, thanks no doubt to the contributions of London’s Shrew’d Business.
(Pictured: Annie (Helen Wrack-Adams) and Paul (Andrew Dodd). Photo Credit: Ross Davidson)
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I had the good fortune to buttonhole Scott Smalley during the Intermission for a brief impromptu interview about the play and Odesa Company. Here’s an edited summary of that chat.
Q. How has the play’s run been so far?
The run’s been really good. Sales have been really good. I’m a Blue Jays fan, and I’m really grateful that they’re in the World Series, but we have found ourselves competing with their success. Our matinees have been selling well, and audiences have been really enjoying the production.
Q. Could you have extended the play to a second week?
We could have. It’s one of those things where we look at our sales data. We picked up momentum thanks to good word of mouth. Unfortunately, it’s one of the drawbacks of doing a one-week run. You don’t have as many opportunities to build interest and momentum in your production.
Q. Is there any particular reason why you chose Princess Ave Playhouse as the venue for Misery?
It’s well-suited for this show. A more intimate space is really helpful for the type of story we’re telling, especially in the second act when things get a little bit crazier on stage. After we did The Elephant Man here, it became very obvious that St. Thomas audiences are interested in great theatre, and they’ve been very supportive of our efforts. We’ve had people come from London who said they didn’t know this place even existed, so that’s pretty cool.
Q. Any comments you would like to make about your Cast?
They’re wonderful! When it came to auditions, we had a lot of options. They were all excellent, and they all brought different things to the roles, but the chemistry that we’ve developed during the rehearsal process was really amazing, and the on-stage product reflects that. I’d like to point out that our Techs have been just as much of the play’s process and success
Q. One final question. What’s up next for Odesa Company?
We were going to do StageQuest next, but we’ve bumped it to next year. We’ve got a few irons in the fire, and we’ve had folks who have pitched various shows. We’re kinda navigating those things, and we look forward to having a very full 2026 season.
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The Beat Magazine 2025 