That thought, then, inspired more musings as to why I continue to go back and fourth on my opinions. Here is what I determined: At first, I was turned off by the political undertones in the script. If you have read previous posts, you know that is just not my bag. It is a bit unfair, I admit, but I tune out immediately if I realize that is a large portion of a play's substance. With the two main characters being a pair of war-time journalists (one photographically speaking), the political element was a bit hard to ignore.

However, I quickly found myself wrapped up in the relationships between the characters thanks to the wonderful humor that is present in the first act. In particular, I thought both Bill McCallum and Mark Benninghofen had wonderful chemistry on stage as a pair of long-time friends. I would also be remiss not to mention Sarah Agnew who played Sarah (how appropriate!). I last saw Agnew in the Jungle Theater's production of The Syringa Tree and I continue to be impressed, but if I am honest, the relationship that interested me most was not the one between her character and James. The one that did was that between Benninghofen's character Richard and his girlfriend, and later wife, Mandy (Valeri Mudek).  There was an unspoken element that made them so endearing as a couple. Whether that was Mandy's naivety or Richard's determination to live a happy life, I will never know. Either way, I liked it very much.

The more I think about it, the more I think Mandy was surprisingly my favorite character. She is portrayed as simplistic, and in its most basic sense, she is but she is also the one who makes the most profound observations. In particular:

In short, was the story particularly gripping? For me, no, but I will say this... it stuck in my head and I'm still not entirely sure why. Time Stands Still runs through the 20th. Go see for yourself.

Later days, everything cuts out, and all I see, is the picture.