From left, Margery Shaw as Ethel Thayer and Joneal Joplin as Norman Thayer in the Arrow Rock Lyceum production of "On Golden Pond." The two deliver terrific performances and provide the "chemistry" that makes the show succeed. In the background is the transparent back wall that helps include the lake in the play. (Contributed photo) [Click to enlarge]

The stars of the Arrow Rock Lyceum's production of "On Golden Pond" have it, lots of it, and that's what makes this funny and touching play really sparkle.

Joneal Joplin, a Lyceum veteran, plays Norman Thayer Jr., and Margery Shaw, in her Lyceum debut, plays his wife, Ethel.

The two veteran actors create something greater than the sum of its parts: a long-time marriage. When a couple has been together long enough they sometimes develop the kind of relationship that has a character of its own -- and in this case, is a character of its own in the play.

I haven't seen the Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda film version, but I've been assured by a trusted source who has (my wife, Amy) that Joplin's performance rivals Fonda's.

The film has a different focus than the play, she said, concentrating more on the relationships between Norman and his daughter, Chelsea, and between Norman and Chelsea's fiancee's teenage son, Billy Ray.

The same arrangement of relationships is included in the play, but the development of each is somewhat truncated by comparison. Norman and Billy hit it off pretty quickly. Norman's disfunctional relationship with his daughter is mostly implied and fairly quickly resolved.

The growth he achieves through those two relationships is still present, but the focus of the play really resides on his relationship with Ethel.

She's agreeable and kind. He's irrascible and sharp-tongued. But they are unquestionably a team, complementing and compensating for each other.

Creating that kind of relationship is not easy to accomplish, in life or on the stage, but Joplin and Shaw make it happen.

The relationship is a joy to behold and the play is fun. The audience at the opening matinee Saturday, Sept. 6, laughed easily and often. And judging by the number of tissues strewn in the aisles after they'd gone, more than a few shed a tear during the moving moments near the end, a sign that the actors have succeeded in making us care about them.

Scene notes

The best scene designs should escape our notice, I suppose, supporting the actors and the story without drawing too much attention to themselves, but it's worth noting when the designers do that job well.

The sets this year have been consistently good, but several have really stood out -- and the one for "On Golden Pond" is one, notable for the way it uses the Lyceum's relatively small space to great effect, not only creating a cozy, rustic retreat, but including the "great outdoors" in the process.

The action all takes place in one room of a lakeside cottage, and the foreground furnishings do a fine job of creating the comfortable, somewhat rustic atmosphere for the characters' summer retreat.

But the task of including the play's namesake, Golden Pond, in the scene would seem to be a difficult one without pulling off a logistically ambitious scene change.

Instead, scenic designer Adam Miecielica pulls off a simple trick that does it. He employs a transparent back wall that separates the room from the shore of Golden Pond.

Two apparently suspended windows and a standalone door frame suggest the exterior wall of the home, but the audience can see the porch railing and silhouetted trees beyond.

And a ripple-effect backdrop suggests the lake itself subtly enough to avoid drawing the eye away from the characters but well enough to give the scene its lakeside feel.

The actors, of course, behave as if the wall is there. They peer through the windows. They walk through the door.

We can believe in the wall and still enjoy the sense that the wilderness is part of the experience.

Remaining performances:

At 2 p.m. on Sept. 10, 13 and 14. At 8 p.m.: 10, 12 and 13.

The "talk back" session, where audience members are invited to stay after the show for an informal discussion with the cast and crew, follows the 8 p.m. show Wednesday, Sept. 10.

Contact Eric Crump at marshalleditor@socket.net