One of the pleasures of being a consistent witness to Bay area theater is watching new stars come into their own on local stages. I still remember the first area performances of Colleen McDonnell, Linda Slade, Jack Holloway and others, and I still savor those moments when I first recognized a talent that would shine in any setting. Some of these actors have stayed and have matured in front of us, others have moved on to work in other cities, but all of them graced us, at least for a time, with stunning performances. Tampa/St. Pete may not be a hub of American theater, but it has its luminaries, and they can make theatergoing thrilling.
Well, now I’ve watched yet another performer blossom. Dahlia Legault first caught my attention in USF’s Bobby and the Chimps and further impressed me in Stageworks’ Shining City several months ago. But in Athol Fugard’s My Children! My Africa! (also a Stageworks production) she reaches levels of artistry that those two earlier performances barely suggested.
This article appears in Sep 2-8, 2009.