Cynthia Mace, who is starring as Mrs. Alving in the current production of the Ibsen classic, Ghosts, at Studio Arena Theatre, last worked at the theater nearly 20 years ago. Legendary Studio Arena publicist and historian Blossom Cohan recalls, “It was an English play; I remember her with an English accent.” Indeed it was, confirms Mace. The show was a production of Michael Frayn’s Benefactors.

The spine of Henrik Ibsen’s Ghosts is easy to articulate, as the compact drama leaps forward with each new revelation. Of course, it can be difficult to realize that a revelation has occurred, as the evasiveness in Ibsen’s repressed world requires that shocking details are disclosed very discretely. Director Kent Paul has, for the most part, drawn a clear line for us to follow within the limitations of casting and rehearsal time in the current Studio Arena production, using a version of the text written by Robert Vivian.

Earlier this year, when James Clow appeared in New York City as Captain Hook opposite Cathy Rigby, the New York Times gave him the sort of rave review every actor dreams of but few actually ever receive. The show “comes alive” when James Clow appears, said the Times. “So striking an impression does Mr. Clow make that he has only to show himself onstage before the audience begins to boo. With a disdainful glance, he replies, ‘I haven’t done anything yet.’ But he has. He has invested this Peter Pan with…energy and spontaneity….”