Stage Review – Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Presented By: Jewel Box Theatre
Show Run: November 6th, 2026- November 22nd, 2026
Date Reviewed: November 8th, 2026
Run Time: 2 Hours 30 Minutes (15-minute intermission)
Reviewed By: Breanne Jensen
On a sunny Fall afternoon, I settled in for an afternoon of theatre to see the classic Tennessee Williams play, “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”. Besides knowing the material is considered a classic and that I briefly remember Scarlett Johansen playing Maggie on Broadway, I had never seen the show, nor did I know what the show really was about. The show takes place on a Southern plantation, the size of the city of Manhattan times two, in the 1950’s (debuted on Broadway in 1955). If you’re familiar with the materials and ideals of the 1950’s, you understand how controversial and outdated this show truly is. As I’m sure my shared audience heard my little scoffs here and there to reflect this paired with the conversations I heard amongst all ages in the lobby during intermission.
The setting is one day in the life of a Billionaire family on their patriarch, Big Daddy’s birthday and how they handle/deal with one another and their privileged problems. Just like any family, they don’t just have problems they have resentment and secrets. The entire show’s setting is in one bedroom of the mansion, belonging to one of the adult sons, Brick and his wife Maggie. This type of show is truly perfect for the intimate Jewel Box Theatre space in the round. Recreating a romantic Southern bedroom set was a wonderful warm invitation into the dysfunction every family experiences. The set (design/construction by Bill Klorig, Suzy Klorig, David Dig) contains gorgeous arched windows with soft linens draping them that you can almost feel the warm humid Southern breeze in, a vanity, lounge, an ornate tapestry rug and most importantly for our characters, a place to libate aka the bar.
The costumes (design by Amy Fancher) are simple, flattering, enhancing and pleasing to the eye, complimented nicely by the light and sound design (Lance Armstrong). The show itself contains many props from decanters, spirits, ice blocks, cigars, paperwork, make up, jewelry, a fake cast, crutches and more and I applaud the stage manager, Paula Knight and assistant stage manager Pam Parkington, for all of their hard work, dedication and organization that created a tight ship!
The direction was straight forward, and Director Jeffrey M. Brown made wise choices to ensure that actors weren’t sedentary for long. The choices led to engaging scenes that allowed us to see the varying emotions of each character. My one wish is that the decision by the production team wasn’t made to precast the role of Big Daddy prior to the open auditions for the other roles. While I appreciate the transparency and this had certainly no gravity on the great job that the actor playing the role did, as someone who has both been on the performer’s side of a production as well as the Director/ Choreographer side of a production feel that pre-casting is an unfair, outdated practice that is a detriment to morale and encouragement for artists to put themselves out there. I implore theatres (specifically local) as well as Mr. Brown, to not continue pre-casting to be allowed and give everyone the opportunity to surprise you with their art!
The cast is comprised of a small yet mighty ensemble of eight talented performers. Reverend Tooker, played by Matthew Bradberry and Dr. Baugh, played by Ashley Hurd, do a great job of being the family’s “paid bystanders”, showing us two seemingly normal outsiders to help further illuminate the amount of dysfunction happening around them. The oldest son, Gooper (played by James Evans) and his wife, Mae (played by Heidi Wills), are somewhat the mosquitoes of the family. Whilst they are more in their “right” mind and have the family’s fortune and longevity in their best interest, they are annoying and I can see why the family can’t stand them. Heidi Wills is wonderful as the dutiful wife with her outward devotion to her husband and family and while it is transparent her portrayal still shows clear financial motivation in her devotion. James Evans brings the tenderness and pathetic need for acceptance that an eldest child feels in a family yet, still embodies a good ole Christian man who loves his wife and six, yes six children.
The matriarch of the family, Big Mama, is played by Ruth Kidder Bookwalter, who is the epitome of the perfect Godly, Southern woman whom, no matter how badly she is treated by her family, unconditionally loves them and stands by their side. Bookwalter’s frantic, toxic and overbearing portrayal had me heartbroken and enthralled. Every time she was on stage I wasn’t sure if I was going to laugh or cry. The patriarch, Big Daddy, is the misogynistic jerk you would imagine someone who refers to themselves as “Big Daddy” would be. Big Daddy refers to his daughter in law Mae as a ‘breeder’, uses homophobic and racist speech and is written to present as the symbol of fear. His constant disregard and disgust for his own wife, his two daughters in laws etc. and how he speaks about sexually using women, had me asking why in general but let alone in that time, why women so disposable?! We’re the only ones who can bring forth life, including to the men who old such a lack of regard for us as a gender. Without women, men would not and could not exist. Wayne Purves (Big Daddy) certainly looks the part of the nicely dressed, slick father of the family, and his portrayal stands as a great performer. I do wish his accent was a bit thicker to match his co-stars as well as induce more fear and intimidation from his family and the audience. The moments where he needed to be commanding Purves does a wonderfully and I believe he can hold that command throughout the show as performances continue the next few weeks.
Golden boy, Brick, is the beloved son who was almost a professional athlete until injury and is reminded of it daily now that he is reinjured. During the performance he is becoming progressively angrier, inebriated and self-loathing while the audience doesn’t quite learn why until closer to the end. James Sgambati (Brick) makes his character more than believable using his boyishly handsome good looks, deep voice, southern drawl, angry disposition and cheeky comebacks. Sgambati evokes emotion, intrigue and keeps the audience in a state of questioning why he is so filled with hatred and bubbling rage. Brick’s wife, Maggie, is played by the stunning Ashley Duffy. Duffy is picture perfect as the desired and sought after jewel of the house/family. Her desire to fix her marriage with Brick, have his children and have him yearn over her the way all the other men do, drives her every decision, including why Brick is so disgusted by her, telling her that he wishes she would take a lover. Duffy’s accent, acting, emotion, timing, believability was all completely matched, and she is the shine bouncing off that tin roof!
Between racism, homophobia, edited out language and highly inappropriate themes/scenes, it may be time to either retire this show or reimagine it to show the severity rather than to try to present it as normal or not that obscene. I spent quite a lot of time trying to figure out why it still resonates with audiences today. While there are some easy political answers, I finally realized that it is a show about human beings acting in their truest form. Humans are learning daily, but we are also ugly, raw, viscous beings that can be truly cruel and hurt others whether it is intentional or not. While not every person or family is inherently awful, this one is and the privilege shows in the writing as well. The Jewel Box Theatre created a strong show with talented performers, lovely sets and as of today they are completely sold out for their run, including the added performances! A large congratulations on a show well done!
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof runs on stage at Poulsbo’s Jewel Box Theatre through November 22. For more information, including ticket availability and sales, visit https://www.jewelboxpoulsbo.org/.
Photo credit: Kathy Berg
