Theater Review: Inherit the Wind

SARASOTA — On Friday, the Asolo Repertory Theatre kicked off its 2024 repertory season with Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee’s American classic Inherit the Wind. Inspired by the infamous 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial, it is one of the most revered courtroom dramas in the canon of American theater.

The fact that we are blessed with one of the richest theater scenes in the nation notwithstanding, there is something special about Asolo’s annual opener. While companies like Urbanite and American Stage regularly bless us with cutting-edge regional debuts of works that would be otherwise unlikely to find a place on a local stage, and the Florida Studio Theater deftly blends the new and the classic, when it comes to productions of sizable casts and grand scale, no one delivers like the Asolo.

The cast of Inherit The Wind. Photo by Frank Atura

There is something about being in the foreground of the Ringling Museum, the majesty of the iconic Mertz Theatre, and the buzzing energy of the FSU Center for the Performing Arts lobby that elevates the experience even before the curtain is raised. This was the first time I had the opportunity to see the play, although the 1960 film version starring Spencer Tracy and Fredric March has always been a favorite. Asolo did not disappoint. The casting was perfect, the set was everything we have come to expect from Asolo, and the sparsely placed musical numbers were pitch-perfect.

Curtis Bannister and the cast of Inherit The Wind. Photo by Sorcha Augustine

Mark Benninghofen and Andrew Long were an exceptional pairing as defense attorney Henry Drummond and prosecutor Mathew Harrison Brady, respectively. Curtis Bannister deserves a special nod for his powerful performance in the lesser role of Reverend Jeremiah Brown, and Brielle Rivera Headrington impressed in her turn as Rev. Brown’s daughter, Rachel. Longtime Asolo vet David Breitbarth was stellar as Judge Coffey. However, it was Sasha Andreev who managed to leave the most indelible impression as muckraker E. K. Hornbeck.

Sasha Andreev and Brielle Rivera Headrington. Photo by Sorcha Augustine

Given the cultural divisions of the day, Inherit the Wind is perhaps more relevant today than at any time in the past 50 years. Asolo’s production is a powerful reminder of the perils of clinging to cultural relics at the expense of modernity’s potential rewards. Directed by Asolo Rep’s new Producing Artistic Director Peter Rothstein, it runs through February 24, 2024. Visit the Asolo website for ticket information.