The sun rose, the clouds parted and out of the rising dust stepped the Joad family – their faces sullied by the soil of barren lands, their spirits worn by a persistent state of destitution.

A microcosm representing all whose lives were torn apart by the Great Depression, the farming family stepped out of John Steinbeck’s ‘Grapes of Wrath’ and onto Syracuse Stage last night.

The breath taking adaptation of Steinbeck’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, as directed by Michael Edwards, depicted the Joads’ Oklahoman exodus with both stage reenactment and bluegrass music. In recreating the sights and sounds of a grim 1938, audience members experienced a similar transit to the heart of southwest America.

Before the sojourn family begins its journey, several scenes serve to define the role of central characters and their relationships to each other. The play begins with a revelation of its central character – Tom Joad – wearing a newly creased suit given to him after a parole release. Instead of returning to familiar countryside and the open arms of his family, he finds that the past four years have left Oklahoma impoverished, his house demolished and his family homeless.

As Tom goes in search of his family, the play gradually introduces other important people in his life, including the Rev. Jim Casey, a confused pastor who has abandoned his station, and Muley Graves, a friend from his past. After a day of wandering with Casey, Tom finds that his parents, grandparents and five siblings are living with his uncle John.

One of the audience members and a graduate of St. Lawrence University, Lisa Mantle, said that she was able to sympathize with Tom because of his ability to provide solidarity for his relatives at the crucial moment of their departure.

‘He was able to look differently at the family and see the whole from the outside now,’ Mantle said.

Once the family is reacquainted, the Joads loads up an old truck with supplies and the 13 members leave their home for potential work out west. Encouraged by a flier offering fruit picking jobs in California, the family is originally optimistic about the outcome of its sacrifice.

Along Route 66 – road to the ‘Promised Land,’ however, difficulties arise and continually complicate a common goal to keep the family together. The Joads are often discouraged by the hoards of other shiftless, migrant families heading toward California with a similar employment initiative. In addition, they experience the death or desertion of family members, vehicular difficulties and the constant depletion of already dwindling financial resources. Heated interactions with policemen and corrupt employers threaten to expose Tom’s broken parole status. The forces of nature are constantly against the family as well, not only creating a drought that forces them out of their territory, but floods near the end of the play as well.

In the midst of these difficulties, the settings range from one extreme to the other, including a make-shift pool in the stage representing a river and large ‘boxcar’ doors that were suspended from the ceiling.

Emily Yurko, one of the many Syracuse residents in attendance, was especially impressed by the floor portal that became a river during several portions of the show.

‘The river was awesome, and something very unexpected,’ she said. Yurko added that the props and stage design was one of the most impressive facets of the show.

Another element that impressed members of the audience was the bluegrass music, which entered the background during the transition scenes adapted from Steinbeck’s book. Also, the music added ambiance during certain important moments of the play, such as when Ma Joad burns a trinket box with photos or when particular family members died. Through fires, floods and the day-to-day toils of poverty and hunger, music provided an elemental backdrop to the emotion of the show.

‘Oh my God, I’m still bawling,’ said Mary Popovich, a Syracuse resident. ‘The way they used music to transition the show was so well done, it definitely made the difference.’

IF YOU GO

WHAT: ‘The Grapes of Wrath’

WHERE: Syracuse Stage

WHEN: Through April 23, dates and times vary

COST: $18- $42, available at syracusestage.org

Published on April 6, 2005 at 12:00 pm