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Boston Globe

Harbor Stage's ‘The Bohemian' finds something new to say about a Willa Cather short story

Advertisement Withers has structured 'The Bohemian' as a combination of narration and enactment. She and Fielding recite large chunks of expository text while also transitioning into a host of characters. It's impressive how smoothly and persuasively Withers and Fielding inhabit so many different people, using only changes in voice and affect. (It is somewhat akin to 'Gatz,' the adaptation of 'The Great Gatsby' by In 'The Bohemian,' a man named Nils Ericson returns to his hometown after many years away. The love of his life, Clara Vavrika, has married his brother, Olaf. Nils sets out to persuade her to run away with him. Olaf, meanwhile, is preoccupied with the possibility that Nils might be in possession of a second will drafted by their recently deceased father. Advertisement Along with charged family dynamics, Withers delivers snapshots of the community's social hierarchy and of a hard-heartedness when, for example, Nils reacts indifferently after his mother tells him of a neighbor's death by suicide. Justin Lahue's scenic design consists of a kitchen with an unusual feature: a crop of dried wheat in a horizontal line at the back of the stage. A certain menace often lurks around the edges — and sometimes smack-dab in the center — of a Withers play. Her recent 'dindin' is a murky psychological mystery about a dinner party that goes seriously awry. (It was made into a film that is now streaming on Amazon Prime and Apple TV Plus.) ' Given the number of overlapping storylines, 'The Bohemian' could benefit from an overview at the beginning. But Withers and the rest of the Harbor Stage ensemble know their audience. A sense of theater-making as a means for building community is part of the DNA of the artist-led company. Harbor Stage walks the walk. 'If you're not in this for love, it usually shows, and not in a good way,' Withers once told an interviewer. During Thursday night's performance, Withers and Fielding took turns mixing ingredients in a bowl and kneading dough. And yes, there was a payoff for the audience at the play's end in the form of a loaf of bread they got to sample. Advertisement THE BOHEMIAN Directed and adapted by Brenda Withers from Willa Cather's 'The Bohemian Girl.' At Harbor Stage Company, Wellfleet. Through July 5. Tickets $25-$50. 508-349-6800, Don Aucoin can be reached at