The Agitators at The Pear Theater Review

November 25, 2024

By Greg Autry

I attended the opening night performance of The Agitators’ at The Pear, Community Theater in Mountain View, California. The Agitators chronicles the enduring but tempestuous friendship of Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass, in their pursuits or racial and gender equality in America.

The story begins when our two Protagonists Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass first meet at a Women’s Rights Convention in 1868. In a series of vignettes, the play highlights their journey through life with the shared excitement of mutually beneficial causes, yet their friendship is constantly fraught with conflict about how to achieve both their individual and mutual goals, fueled we see by their personal biases.

Written by New York based Playwright Mat Smart in 2017, and Directed for The Pear by Kerry Gudjohnsen, I was impressed with Smart’s dialogue, at times humorous and constantly true to the characters, it continually moved the story forward. Adam C. Torrian as Frederick Douglass is forceful in his delivery and provides a strong physical presence on stage. Krista Joy Serpa as Susan B. Anthony, emoted the compassion and intelligence of a strong woman with subtle and expressive dialog and compassionate stage presence.  

Krista Joy Serpa and Adam C. Torrian complement one another physically and emotionally on stage and their uplifting energy keeps the audience fascinatingly absorbed in this marvelous story. Anthony and Douglas were full of hopes, dreams, and a common purpose. As they grew to become the cultural icons we know today, their movements collided and their friendship was severely tested. This is the story of that forty-five year friendship: from its beginning in Rochester, through a civil war, and to the highest halls of government. They agitated the nation, they agitated each other, and, in doing so, they helped shape the Constitution and the course of American history. 

What struck me most about the The Agitator’s is the timeliness of it all.  The Fifteenth Amendment was ratified by the U.S. Congress on February 3, 1870, only 12 years after Anthony and Douglass first meet. Yet Susan B Anthony did not live to see the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment, ratified by Congress on August 18, 1920, fourteen years after her passing. Juxtaposing two of the most crucial issues to face modern humans, racial and gender equality, the Play made me think more about why supposed intelligent civilized humans cannot come together as such, even today, 150 years later.  

The crew and creative team at The Pear includes direction by Kerry Gudjohnsen, stage management by Pear Production Manager Kelly Weber Barraza, lighting and sound design by Sinjin Jones, and set design by Pear Technical Director, Louis Stone-Collonge.

WHERE: The Pear Theatre; 1110 La Avenida St., Suite A, Mountain View, CA 94043.

SHOW RUN TIME: Approximately two hours, with a 15 minute intermission.

WHEN: November 22 – December 15, 2024; Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm, Sundays at 2:00 pm and select Thursdays at 7:30 pm.

TICKETS: $20 – $42. For more info or to purchase tickets, visit thepear.org/whats-playing, call (650) 254-1148 or email in**@th*****.org. Discounted group rates for 10+ are available. 

The Pear Theatre was founded in 2002 by Diane Tasca and came under the leadership of its third Artistic Director, Sinjin Jones, in 2020. Its goal is to deliver unique theatrical experiences, and intimate theatre that is big, bold, brave and magical, while fostering community connection and inspiring the lives of patrons and artists in transformative ways. The theatre, a state-of-the-art black box with a capacity of 75-99 seats, has been recognized by the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle with the Paine Knickerbocker Award and multiple cast and crew nominations for Excellence in Theatre. In 2022, The Pear began hosting the monthly Pear Pressure Cabaret presented by Harmony Werks and monthly Improv Nights with Greg & Friends. The Pear is also home to the Pear Playwrights’ Guild which hosts a developmental reading series (Fresh Produce), an annual festival of new one-act plays (Pear Slices), and an annual playwriting festival featuring new works (Fresh Baked Pears). The theatre is also home to a student outreach and education program (Pear Roots), and the recently launched Pear Seeds Theatre Camps.

CAST:

Adam C. Torrian (Frederick Douglass) is excited to be back onstage at The Pear, where he was most recently seen as Moses in Pass Over. Some of his other roles include John in The Whipping Man (Prospect Theater Project), the title role in Othello (Merced Shakespearefest), Corporal Ellis in A Soldier’s Play (Altarena Playhouse), Dr. John Prentice in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (Gallo Center Rep), Bolingbroke in Richard II (AfricanAmerican Shakes), Boy Willie in The Piano Lesson (Sankofa Theatre Company) and Lancelot in District Merchants (also at The Pear). He is also particularly excited to be sharing the stage with his best friend again!

Krista Joy Serpa (Susan B. Anthony) is grateful and honored to be making her debut at The Pear. She was last seen in the South Bay as Hope in Urinetown and Aldonza in Man of La Mancha, both with Los Altos Stage Company, and you can catch her back here at The Pear next year in Gods of Comedy! Other favorite adventures include Guenevere in Camelot (The Mountain Play; SFBATCC nominee,) Desdemona in Othello (Merced Shakespearefest,) Maria in The Sound of Music (Modesto Performing Arts; u/s Sierra Rep,) Emily in Our Town (Altarena Playhouse,) and Olive in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Cinnabar.) She’d like to thank Sinjin and Kerry for trusting her with this incredible gift, everyone who is helping to tell this crucial story and continue its vital work in this theatre and beyond, and especially Adam, the best friend, accomplice, and agitator she could ask for.

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Production photos by Sinjin Jones, used with permission.