If you ask me…
– Tom Holehan
The plight of female nurses during the Vietnam War is explored in “A Piece of My Heart”, the current
production jerking tears at the Ivoryton Playhouse. Shirley Lauro’s 1991 play is based on the 1986 oral history book of the same name by Keith Walker in which 26 of the estimated 1,500 American women who went to Southeast Asia recounted their experiences.
“A Piece of My Heart” explores the true stories of six American women, five nurses and one country-
western singer, who served in the Vietnam War at the height of the conflict. Act one follows each woman
before and during her tour in Southeast Asia and the second act deals with their returns to an America where protests and the unpopularity of the war divide the country. The women struggle with PTSD, trauma, and societal shunning in one of the most painful chapters of American history.
I am not familiar with the original source material, but Lauro’s adaptation seems to have tried to fill the play with as many incidents as possible. The first act is nearly 90 minutes with the second act clocking in at a talky hour. Director Jacqueline Hubbard has assembled an admirable ensemble of women (with one actor, Galen Donovan, playing all the American men). Standouts include Angela Hall as a long-term military officer and nurse, Allie Seidbold playing the country-western musician booked to entertain the troops and Mandy Evans as a Vassar graduate serving as a Red Cross volunteer. The other women, all fine, include Olivia Fenton, Alicia Kaori and Autumn Eliza Sheffy. The addition of several musical numbers, primarily in the first act, are a welcome addition nicely rendered by the harmonious women led by Hall’s powerful belt. Donovan, however, struggles to differentiate between his male characters.
The play itself goes on far too long repeating and belaboring themes that are overtly obvious from the
start. As good as the actors are, I really wasn’t engaged with them or their stories and the tear-jerking finale that takes place at the Vietnam memorial is ham-fisted and sentimental. Any single episode of the classic television series, “MASH”, is more succinct and potent than “A Piece of My Heart”. I was also reminded of Kristin Hannah’s recent bestseller, “The Women”, which detailed with powerful emotion the plight of women nurses in Vietnam.
Kim Zhou’s cluttered scenic design doesn’t always clearly represent the individual settings and Qier
Luo’s shadowy lighting is hard on the eyes making it difficult to clearly see which actor is speaking. The projection design by Ein Kim is often confusing in what it is representing while Heidi Hanson’s costume design seems period perfect throughout. “A Piece of my Heart” is a sincere effort by the playwright and there will no doubt be many who are moved by its story. They were certainly in evidence at Ivoryton.
“A Piece of My Heart” continues at continues at the Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main Street in Ivoryton,
Connecticut through October 25, 2026. For further information or ticket reservations call the theatre box office at 860.767.7318 or visit: www.ivorytonplayhouse.org.
Tom Holehan is one of the founders of the Connecticut Critics Circle, a frequent contributor to WPKN
Radio’s “State of the Arts” program and the Stratford Crier and Artistic Director of Stratford’s Square One Theatre Company. He welcomes comments at: tholehan@yahoo.com. His reviews and other theatre information can be found on the Connecticut Critics Circle website: www.ctcritics.org.
