(The above picture and the review below were printed in a 1991 edition of ‘Soap Opera Weekly’)
A personal review of ‘The Lizard King’, as submitted by nicholsevansfan…
(includes a small review of ‘Love Letters’)
I jumped at the chance to see my favorite actor live and in person. But I thought that television had shown me his range and that I couldn’t possibly be more in awe or impressed more by seeing him in person, on stage. I was wrong, VERY wrong.
My friends, my mom, and I were lucky enough to get front row seats. The theater is very small, but the play and especially Stephen more than made up for that. Though the play was based on fiction, it gave a lot of insight into the heart and soul of Jim Morrison. When Stephen came up on stage, it was like he was Stephen no more. He absorbed the spirit of Jim Morrison and was now introducing him to the audience.
Once again, Stephen gave dimensions to a character and showed the human side to a character that, on the surface, seems like “just another bad seed”. In every line and every syllable, Stephen captured every bit of symbolism and irony and humor, emphasizing them to make us feel as though we’d been transported back to meet Jim Morrison himself. Stephen vividly portrayed a man torn up by the Hollywood game; a man who desired to be more than a poster idol but succumbed to his addictions.
This portrayal of Jim Morrison was stunningly intense, and to this day-three months after seeing the play- I am still haunted by the “spirit” of Jim Morrison.
After the play, we got to meet Stephen. He was SO nice. What struck me was how calm he was after this performance. He was very patient with fans, and didn’t seem to mind talking to us at all- it wasn’t a chore to him. It was obvious after speaking to Stephen that leaving Days was a positive step for him. He was excited about the play, believed in the play, and seemed to have a great time doing it. It was wonderful to see that. When we talked to him, he mentioned that he and Mary Beth would be doing a play called “Love Letters” in Beverly Hills the very next week. As we left the theater, Stephen was very sweet, asking us to come again as we said good bye and told him what a great performance he gave.
Needless to say, the week between plays seemed to drag on forever. Finally the day came, and they were incredible! The characters never touched, kissed, or looked at each other in front of the audience, but they didn’t need to. You could FEEL the love. As Andrew and Melissa, Stephen and Mary Beth made us laugh so hard, our stomachs hurt, and made us cry- plus everything in between. Mary Beth did what she does better than any other actress I have seen: she made us sympathize with and care for Melissa Gardner despite her flaws. Melissa was unlike Kayla in every extreme: she was bitter, insecure, unstable, and lacked the real family she so desperately wanted. I saw a grown man in front of me in the audience get choked up and cry when Melissa died. The only word that comes close to describing these actors on stage is magical. I wish every Stephen Nichols and Mary Beth Evans fan could have had, or does have the experience of seeing them on stage.
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