Jane Anderson’s 2018 play retells the oft-dramatized life of Joan of Arc from the point of view of her mother, Isabelle. But though Kate Fry brings flashes of faith, fear, and ferocity to Isabelle, the story itself falls curiously flat, and not just because we know the ending.
Fry and Smith have a scene of great tenderness and sorrow before Joan’s death that suggests the emotional depths Anderson could have reached if she’d spent more time really investing in the mother-daughter connection, rather than using it as a clothesline for airing out a story that’s been told many times before. v
Through 10/20: Wed 1 and 7:30 PM, Thu 7:30 PM, Fri 8 PM, Sat 2:30 and 8 PM, Sun 2:30 PM; also Sun 10/13, 7 PM; Wed 10/9, 7:30 PM only, Northlight Theatre, North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, 847-673-6300, northlight.org, $30-$89, $15 students (subject to availability).
