The energies that actors bring to a stage can make all the difference between a show that plods and a show that sizzles. Thanks to the energy of the Michigan State University Summer Circle actors, “What I Did Last Summer” could give fresh-cooked bacon a run for its money.

The A.R. Gurney show is a piece of nostalgia, set in 1945 on the shores of Lake Erie in New York. A 14-year-old Charlie is at that age between childhood and adulthood where he is starting to make independent decisions, but still doesn’t have much control over his life. He goes to work for Anna, the town eccentric who gives him art lessons as well as work.

The chemistry between Lela Ivey’s Anna and Mark Schenfisch’s Charlie is superb. Every scene between them sparkles, and you can see how each of them feed off the other. Charlie grows in her presence and Schenfisch reveals each of the young man’s struggles and emotions in an authentic manner.

Ivey clearly owns the stage whenever she is on it. It is easy to see why Anna was such a powerful and memorable force in Charlie’s life, given the way Ivey plays it. She is full of energy and presents a remarkable contrast to the other characters – she is someone who is out of place and out of time and yet owns her space in a way that few others can compete with. While the other women move with a conservative grace, even in their most frustrated moments, Anna prowls and attacks, elbows out, body crouched and arms and legs stretched.

While Ivey brings some of the greatest intensity to the stage, each of the other actors creates the character that the script lays out for them and does so in a way that is authentic and committed.

Cory Weatherup’s Ted is full of energy and resentment. He’s becoming a man and is filled with hormones that make his earlier relationships uneasy, changing them from pals to competition and objects of desire.

Mandy Myers plays the hapless and frustrated mother, lonely because her husband has been away at sea for so long, and she has two teenage children who each have their own struggles and fears. She is torn between their needs and her own, and Myers lets us see Grace’s uncertainties.

Jenna Jo Pawlicki portrays Elsie, an angry, insecure young woman, who tells us outright that she is difficult and argumentative because she misses her father and feels unmoored in her life. Like the others, she is energetic on stage, bringing her own tension to the forefront in each of her scenes. Like the others in this story, we get to watch her grow and bloom and see how a summer can change her.

Anna Morreale’s Bonny rounds out the cast with her dainty portrayal of a young teen girl who is also learning how hormones can affect her and the boys who used to be her playmates. She is pretty and controlled, very much reminiscent of Becky Thatcher in the Tom Sawyer tales.

“What I Did Last Summer” works because all the actors work so hard and make us believe that they are in 1943 struggling with real issues and figuring out how they will grow up.

They’re supported by fantastic tech work as well. Hernando Claros’ scene design easily switches between locations, whether Anna’s studio or Charlie’s home. It invites the audience to imagine with the actors where things are while Jason Painter Price’s sound design provides the backdrop of Lake Erie with its waves and lake sounds. Karen Kangas-Preston costumes came on and off easily as required for various scenes.

MSU’s Summer Circle performs outdoors on the banks of the Red Cedar. When there is a breeze, the mosquitos aren’t too bad, but you’ll want to bring bug spray. Picnic food is welcome, and the shows go up rain or shine. However, if there is lightning, the show will be cancelled – as it was on what was supposed to be opening night Wednesday.