The Impressionists: In the 2000 movie Pollock, a crucially transformative scene places Jackson Pollock breaking through his previous conventions to slap paint on canvases. When wife Lee Krasner comes around to see what would forever after be recognized as his signature groove, she proclaims, "You've done it, Pollock. You've cracked it wide open." The cracking-wide-open transformation in artistic temperament and creativity is what South Florida playwright Michael McKeever seemingly aims to track in his new play. He defines "a time, a place, a moment" for the fringes of the Paris art community of the 1860s and '70s, when "with a blink of an eye," paradigms shifted and something new and thrilling was hatched among a group of upstart painters. This is one of those history-theater experiences that brings out the most self-congratulatory aspects of its audience, unable to hold back harrumphs of satisfaction as they match characters onstage with reproductions of ballerinas hanging in the foyers and bathrooms of their McMansions. With flawless acting in delicious period costumes and spot-on dialogue, scenes roll along with their own careful momentum. But though the play is fun, it is also more like a series of interesting footnotes than a deeper reflection into the creative process itself. — Dave Amber Through May 21. Caldwell Theatre Company, 7873 N. Federal Hwy., Boca Raton; 561-241-7432.
