An Enemy of the People - East Bay Times Review

While watching the Actors Ensemble production, I couldn’t help but draw a parallel between the polluted waters in the play and the federal government’s recent decision to open up drilling rights along the California coast. Let’s hope that our “play” can be more successful for the environment and people’s health than Miller’s.

Several of the performers, most notably Glenn Havlan as Mayor Peter Stockmann and Lisa Wang as the newspaper publisher, are more than up to the task. Bruce Kaplan, in the exceedingly difficult role of Dr. Stockmann, conveys a wide variety of emotions, including several bursts of anger with mixed results. While often believable, other moments seem forced.

In the spirit of true community theater, director Michael Cohen blends more experienced actors with newcomers, giving several cast members their first taste of life on stage. Elena Childs designed the period set, with Paula Aiello supplying the many period costumes.