Theatre Review 'The Sweet Delilah Swim Club'

Theater Three’s Stellar Production of The Sweet Delilah Swim Club is a Must-See!

By Cindi Sansone-Braff  

THE SWEET DELILAH SWIM CLUB Elizabeth Ladd, Lori Beth Belkin (Photo Credit: Steven Uihlein, Theatre Three Productions, Inc)The Sweet Delilah Swim Club is a beautifully written, well-crafted dramedy by a trio of talented writers, Jesse Jones, Nicholas Hope, and Jamie Wooten, also known as Jones Hope Wooten, “America’s Playwrights.”

This funny and poignant two-act, four-scene play scanning 33 years, tells the story of five members of a championship college women’s swim team who have a weekend-long reunion every August at “Sweet Delilah Cottage,” an oceanfront beach house on North Carolina’s Outer Banks. 

The play opens when the women are 44 and ends when they are 77. As in real life, much happens during this three-decades-long period, and some heavyweight themes are tackled, such as divorce, demanding children, disappointing career dreams, dementia, disease, and death. You know, the usual trials and tribulations that form the fabric of our lives.

Each of the five characters in this show is distinctly different from one another, which is the source of many conflicts that comprise the plot. The witty dialogue, an abundance of humorous one-liners that arise organically from the action, and zany but lovable characters make this play an American treasure.

Randall Parsons’s set design, a realistic depiction of a cozy beach cottage, and Linda May’s outstanding direction, with her meticulous attention to detail, added to the overall success of this show. 

The cast of five is outstanding and displayed palatable onstage chemistry, camaraderie, and boundless energyStephanie Moreau, Suzie Dunn Lori Beth Belkin, Elizabeth Ladd, Tamralynn Dorsa ( Photo Credit: Steven Uihlein, Theatre Three Productions, Inc ) throughout. Jason Allyn’s period-appropriate costumes and wigs, in conjunction with the extraordinary acting abilities of these five actresses, allowed the audience to witness these Southern belles navigating their way through the emotional tsunami known as mid-life and later recharting the course of their lives, acclimating to the ravages of time.

Tamralynn Dorsa’s portrayal of Sheree Hollinger was spot-on. Back in the day, Sheree was the team captain of their college swim team. Throughout the decades, she continually drives her friends crazy, micromanaging their every move during their reunions. Ms. Hollinger looked the part as well since Sheree watches every bite she eats, hellbent on maintaining her athletic physique from now till doomsday.  

Lori Beth Belkin was believable as Dinah Grayson, a hard-drinking, wise-cracking, career-driven attorney who later comes to see that for all she has achieved in the courtroom, her personal life has left her less than satisfied.

I always love seeing Stephanie Moreau in Theatre Three’s productions. She excels in the role of Lexie Richards, a sassy serial divorcee, who sucks, tucks, lasers, and lifts her body parts in a fierce war against aging. Lexie is the character who transforms the most throughout the play, and by the time she reaches the 77^th year of her life, she has made the wise decision to age gracefully. She has also stopped being so self-absorbed and has become caring, kind, and supportive of others.

Suzie Dunn as Vernadette Simms, a woman down on her luck, is laugh-out-loud funny. Vernadette has a wicked sense of gallows humor, and she has some of the funniest lines in the play, most of which center around the sorry state of hertrainwreck of a life. At the end of the play, when Vernadette loses her memory, the other characters see this as a blessing in disguise.

Tamralynn Dorsa, Stephanie Moreau, Lori Beth Belkin, Suzie Dunn, Elizabeth Ladd (Photo Credit: Steven Uihlein, Theatre Three Productions, Inc)Elizabeth Ladd is superb in the role of Jeri Neal McFeeley, formerly known as Sister Mary Esther, a Catholic nun who makes a mid-life decision that shocks her longtime friends. Through her body language, facial expressions, and gestures, Ms. Ladd reflects the inner and outer growth this character experiences as she embarks on her new life outside the confines of the convent.

The Sweet Delilah Swim Club is a well-written, brilliantly directed, and superbly acted play, and it will certainly be worth your effort to venture out on a cold, wintry evening to spend some quality time with five Southern Belles at the “Sweet Delilah Cottage” by the sea.

Running now through February 4, for ticket information, call the box office: (631) 928-1130, Monday-Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm, or visit their websites at www.TheatreThree.com.

Cindi Sansone-Braff is an award-winning playwright. She has a BFA in Theatre from UCONN and is a member of the Dramatists Guild. She is the author of Grant Me a Higher Love, Why Good People Can’t Leave Bad Relationships, andConfessions of a Reluctant Long Island Psychic. Two of her monologues from her full-length plays are featured in Smith and Kraus’s The Best Men’s Stage Monologues of 2022 and The Best Women’s Stage Monologues of 2022.www.Grantmeahigherlove.com.