An earful of melodrama

Audiences may not recognize young Vincent Van Gogh from his later brooding, earless self-portraits. Based on true events, "Vincent in Brixton" by Nicholas Wright shows a giddy 20-year-old Van Gogh discovering love and his greater artistic passions while briefly working in London.

This coming-of-age story shares similarities with other sentimental biodramas based on the lives of iconic artists. The current production at Riverwalk Theatre, directed by Mary Job, touts strong production values in costume, lighting and a period perfect set. It also provides opportunities for fine performances from Riverwalk veterans and newcomers. 

Set in 1873, "Vincent" begins with young Dutchman Van Gogh (J.C. Kibbey) finding lodging in Brixton while working as an artist in London. He is quickly transfixed by the landlady’s daughter, Eugenie Loyer (Amy Winchell), before falling for the landlady herself, Ursula Loyer (Laura Davis Stebbins). As a widow, Ursula learned to suppress her emotions when her husband died. The constant distraction of cleaning and cooking has not drained her heart, however, which she tentatively offers to the eager Vincent.

But love like this cannot last. The show’s conclusion questions whether an artist can devote himself to another person when his entire being is focused on creating art. 

As Vincent, Kibbey dons an impressively consistent Dutch accent. Unfortunately, the cathedral-like Riverwalk acoustics muddy much of his dialogue. The show’s first 20 minutes magnify the problem with tedious exposition and character introductions. Kibbey later compensates with comic facial expressions based on language and cultural mistranslations that at times liken him to the stock foreign exchange student in a raunchy college comedy.

Without hints of depression or darker days to come, Kibbey’s Vincent is amusing and boyishly innocent — particularly in the first half — but with no real romantic motivations to match the script’s story arch. 

Stebbins, on the other hand, effortlessly translates Kibbey’s smiles into seduction. She provides the necessary gravitas to propel her character from apathy to jubilant hope to irreconcilable grief. Her proper London accent also fares much better in the auditorium, piercing to the back rows. Stebbins appears to be responsible for kindling the few moments of real chemistry that appear just before and after the intermission, even though a fire never fully blazes.

As Eugenie, Winchell provides strong support, transforming from a daughter in need of her mother’s protection to a daughter protecting her mother. Joseph Mull and Sarah Bence fill in the final supporting roles with distinct dialects but mostly unremarkable performances.

Job’s own set design and Ted Daniel’s lighting and projection design are impressively detailed. From a cast-iron stove to painted wooden floors with projections of the cityscape and Van Gogh paintings, Daniels and Job create the perfect frame for the actor’s paint. Similarly, costume design and coordination by Susan Swenson and Skip Panek provide appropriate colors and textures to the characters who wear them.

For more jaded viewers looking for "Starry Night" on stage, "Vincent in Brixton" relies too heavily on melodramatic devices and obvious twists to be fulfilling. For everyone else, the show is a worthwhile rendering of a post-impressionist painter through a post-Nicholas Sparks lens.