‘Inherit the Wind’ @ Mainstage Irving - Las Colinas
Title photo Mike Morgan Photography; show photos Kris Ikejiri
—Carol M. Rice
Mainstage Irving-Las Colinas has brought Inherit the Wind back to the Metroplex!
While you may think I’m referring to the fact that this particular show was originally supposed to open at Mainstage in March of 2020 (and we all know what happened back then), that isn’t the whole story.
What you may not realize is that the original production of Inherit debuted in Dallas in 1955, under the direction of the incomparable Margo Jones. The play made it to Broadway later that year and has been revived there twice, not to mention the multiple film and television versions and innumerable local productions.
As Harry Friedman states in his director’s note, “When originally produced, Inherit the Wind was an anti-McCarthyism play with a strong message about defending the freedom of thought. Sound familiar?” While Arthur Miller’s 1953 The Crucible is a better-known parallel view of McCarthyism alongside the Salem witch trials, Inherit the Wind is equally powerful, if not more so. None of us want to be told what we can and cannot think...but in today’s society, being told our opinions are wrong is pretty common. Social media has made it easy to hide behind a screen to argue with strangers about not just opinions, but facts.
So, yes, Inherit the Wind is still extremely timely.
The plot is a dramatization of the 1925 “Scopes Monkey Trial,” in which a young Tennessee schoolteacher was put on trial for teaching evolution in the classroom, something that was against the law in that state. While the location is never mentioned in the play, various details let us know the little town of Hillsboro couldn’t be anywhere but the South.
Bertram “Bert” Cates is our young teacher/miscreant, played with determined sincerity by Robert White. White is completely believable as he refuses to bow to the masses who insist he’s an evil Bible hater, just for reading a passage from Darwin’s Origin of Species to his high school students. His girlfriend and fellow teacher Rachel Brown is the local minister’s daughter and (until she reads Darwin’s book herself) begs with him to say he’s sorry, that he didn’t mean it. It doesn’t matter how convincing Kathleen McNamara is as Rachel, Cates won’t change his plea. Even though the two don’t always get along, they make a convincing pair.
As Matthew Harrison Brady, a three-time presidential candidate (based on William Jennings Bryan) and nationally known attorney with strong Biblical beliefs, Allen Matthews does a compelling job prosecuting Cates. He brings out the dynamic public speaker in Brady and makes us all want to follow him, even when we know he’s wrong. Matthews has excellent charisma in the role.
Henry Drummond, an equally famous lawyer considered by Brady and the townspeople to be a devil-like liberal, is played with far less pomp and posturing by Nelson Wilson. Wilson’s Drummond (based on Clarence Darrow) is purposely not as likeable as Matthews’ Brady, but that’s because his overarching goals are different. Wilson gives his character equal parts compassion and frustration at what he and Cates are up against.
As sardonic newspaper reporter E.K. Hornbeck (H.L. Mencken covered the real trial—look all these “real” fellas up if you’re too young to have heard of them!)—and Scott Bardin is almost too laid back and cynical. He’s constantly present and aware, always subtly reacting to the action, but some more levels would have been nice.
Danny Macchietto plays the Judge with just the right amount of small-town superiority, and Jason Crawford Jordan is perfectly cast as Tom Davenport, Brady’s local right hand in the courtroom. As the bailiff Mr. Meeker, Jony Marceo Picaso comes across as empathetic and efficient.
As Howard Blair, the 15-year-old student Brady brings to the stand to testify against Cates, Fox Elrod plays the role for laughs rather than believability. Juniper Pirro is more subdued as fellow student Melinda Loomis and does a nice job not stealing focus.
As Mrs. Brady, Suzanne Reeves makes the perfect supportive wife of a public figure. Always with a blank yet sweet smile and a soft, encouraging word, she both complements and contrasts well with Matthews’ portrayal of Brady.
Clayton Cunningham plays the Rev. Jeremiah Brown with almost as much bombast as Brady, only he’s raining down hellfire and brimstone on the sinner Cates – so much so that Brady has to hold him back when Rachel tries to defend him. Cunningham makes Brown the kind of preacher who gives the Bible a bad name, which is exactly what the role calls for.
Nancy Bonetti Wilson, Emily Cole, Rachale Ramos Roach, and Nancy Ewing Friedman play what I call “church ladies” – local busybodies who stick together through thick and thin, making sure everyone has enough to eat at events...while gossiping bitterly and “praising God” in the same breath. They make an excellent chorus of sorts for the action.
Kevin Michael Fuld, Steve Iwanski-Sanchez, Sacha Connor, and Johnny Hannay each play a couple of roles apiece and manage to make them all different.
The massive set designed by T.J. Firneno is, interestingly, both complicated and minimalist. With one tall level above the courtroom, the townspeople are always on display and reacting loudly to the proceedings…yet every time an actor exits upstage, they have to duck, which is distracting. I liked the simple use of tables, chairs, and benches for the various locations, especially the courtroom, but would have liked to be able to concentrate more on the actual trial and less on the ever present townspeople’s reactions. The set is enhanced by Hank Baldree’s lighting design, and the costumes by Michael A. Robinson/Dallas Costume Shoppe worked well for the time period and the characters.
Because of the company’s six-year delay in getting Inherit the Wind staged, director Harry Friedman has obviously had a lot of time to think about this show; his love for the story, the characters, and the theme behind it all is readily apparent. Mainstage Irving-Las Colinas is brave to put on such a large and potentially controversial production. Not because it isn’t a good show, but because, sadly, we’re dealing with a political climate all too similar to that which Lawrence and Lee were writing about in 1955. (Just on a local level, remember the bitter recent school board fights around our area.) If you like to think for yourself, and value being able to express your opinions,Inherit the Wind is an excellent choice of entertainment for you.
WHEN: July 24-August 8, 2026
WHERE: Dupree Theater/Irving Arts Center, 3333 N. MacArthur Blvd., Irving TX
WEB: https://mainstageirving.com/inherit-the-wind/
