Riverside Theatre opened the first production of its 2026 Bobbie Olsen Series on the intimate Waxlax Stage. “Mauritius,” by Theresa Rebeck, is a tidy thriller taking place in the gripping world of … rare stamp collecting?
If philately doesn’t strike you as fertile ground for drama, check your expectations, because Rebeck has fashioned a smart, compelling and often funny five-character play.
The title refers to an island nation in the Indian Ocean, from which has come a pair of extremely rare, extremely valuable postage stamps that are a veritable Holy Grail of the stamp collecting world. They are what Alfred Hitchcock referred to in his movies as the MacGuffin – the seemingly inconsequential device that sets the plot in motion; that which the characters will scheme, fight and threaten to kill for.
The stamps are in the possession of Jackie as part of a collection she claims her recently deceased mother bequeathed to her in her final days. She has brought it to the shop of Philip, to whom she’s been referred, as a stamp expert who can evaluate the contents of the collection.
When Philip sizes her up dismissively and shoos her away without so much as a glance at the collection, Dennis, also hanging about in the store, offers to take a look and advise her. He recognizes the prized stamps at once, but tells Jackie, who has no idea of what treasure she’s holding, that there’s little of worth in her collection.
Dennis then sets in motion his plan to con Jackie out of the stamps and sell them to Sterling, a rather nefarious-seeming businessman and rabid collector with unlimited means.
At a recent matinee, these expository scenes were played at a breakneck pace that left one wondering why these strangers were snapping at one another, or if the cast had a flight for which they were running late.
Rebeck writes very naturalistic dialogue that conveys the characters’ tentative and careful sussing out of each other and the situation. But being played at such a gallop, whether under director Steve Umberger’s cracked whip or the actors’ own rhythms, threatens the intent of what’s going on. Pump the brakes a little and keep the action moving, yes, but not so breathlessly that it obscures the story’s clarity.
As events unfold and the stakes rise, this rapidity makes more sense. It turns out Jackie has a half-sister, Mary, who claims the stamp collection is rightfully hers, having passed from her paternal grandfather (the two women had the same mother but different fathers). She has no interest in selling the stamps, despite Jackie’s desperate financial need to do so.
When Dennis follows Jackie home and insinuates himself into the sisters’ conflict, the story is set to boil over as the parties vie for the prized stamps. Suffice it to say there’s a fight director, Tony Simotes, credited in the program.
Among the cast, Dayna Palya is especially good as Jackie. She’s clearly a troubled young woman, yet Rebeck never overtly lays out what exactly has made her so. It seems to go far beyond the stresses of caring for her mother throughout a terminal illness. Palya subtly hints at deeper problems, as Jackie is apparently no stranger to physical abuse.
As Dennis, the conman trying to bring all parties together in a profitable scheme, Rod Brogan is all false bonhomie, everybody’s pal. It’s a wonder that the other characters don’t see through his faked geniality, but people see what they want to. Brogan skillfully calibrates his characterization to win us over as a good guy by the final blackout.
Katharine McLeod is appropriately exasperating as Mary, the sister who left Jackie to deal with their mother’s illness but returns to claim the spoils. Her overstated concern with doing the right thing renders her true motives suspect from the get-go.
Philip, the stamp expert played by Liam Craig, seems a quintessential screw-up, with a history of screwing up, who we see screw up multiple times over the course of the play. Craig is given nothing to make us feel otherwise.
Wynn Harmon could use a little more shading as Sterling, the volatile collector who’s accustomed to getting what he wants at any cost. Not mustache-twirling villainy necessarily, but as it is, he’s an amiable, if foul-mouthed, British gent given to sudden outbursts of physical violence.
A hint of the menace lurking beneath the veneer might lead to more suspense rather than mere surprise when his dark side erupts. Harmon does, however, have a particularly fine moment when Sterling first lays eyes on and longs to caress the Mauritius stamps, the objects of his desire.
The play is presented in a three-quarter round configuration of the Waxlax, with the audience on three sides of Emily Luongo’s scenic design. Her trio of playing areas allows for a seamless flow of the action from scene to scene, augmented by Genny Wynn’s lighting, Anthony Narciso’s sound, and Anna Hillbery’s costumes.
“Mauritius” runs through Feb. 22 at Riverside Theatre, 3250 Riverside Park Dr., Vero Beach. Tickets are available online at RiversideTheatre.com or by calling the box office at 772-231-6990.
Photos provided
