"CURTAIN CALLS"
By Pat Launer
01/20/06
Political relevance, German and Greek,
It doesn’t matter what language you speak:
‘Biedermann’ and ‘
Plus, the ‘Beautiful’ boys have a lot to say,
And we hear what a Death Row inmate thinks
Indicting the system, thanks to Lynx.
Watch the Young Playwrights hone their craft:
We clucked and clapped and sighed and laughed.
WHERE THERE’S SMOKE…
THE SHOW: Biedermann and
the Firebugs, a darkly comic satire by Max Frisch (1911-1991)
THE BACKSTORY: Swiss novelist/playwright Max Frisch was
influenced stylistically (though not politically) by his 1947 meeting with Bertolt Brecht, and thematically by his obsession with
post-war guilt and the origins of Nazism. Biedermann, first written as a radio play (1953), then
revised for television and stage (1958), extended his ongoing fascination with
existential questions of identity, morality and culpability.
THE STORY, THE PLAYERS: In a time of rampant fear
and paranoia, a town is being victimized by arsonists. Wealthy but sleazy hair
tonic mogul Gottlieb Biedermann (pitch-perfect Tim
Irving), his fussy, materialistic wife (amusingly overanxious Laura Bozanich)
and their muddled maid (funny Lisel Gorell-Getz) live in fear. Ignoring the
(silly and not very well synchronized) Chorus of firefighters (Kim Strassburger, Jerry Lee and Joshua Harrell – all much
better in other roles), Biedermann allows a burly
stranger(hilariously doltish, clownish Daren Scott) to talk his way into the house, invite in his
smarmy friend (deliciously oily Joshua Everett Johnson) and pack the attic with
explosives. [An inspired reunion of those George-and-Lenny
‘Mice and Men’ comrades]. Biedermann believes
all pyromaniacs should be hanged, but when they set up shop in his own house,
he overlooks the facts whacking him in the face and placates the intruders,
hoping to cultivate their friendship and prove his civility and humanity. He
refuses to see them for what they are and, through ignorance and inaction,
contributes to his own demise. He even supplies the final, incendiary match.
This
madcap tragicomedy of self-deception is subtitled ‘A Morality Play Without a Moral,’ and one might say, without morals. It’s
just the ticket for our own perilous times, a wacky but potent, argument
against personal and political complacency.
THE PRODUCTION: In adapting the play, from the translation by Michael
Bullock, Tim Irving and Cygnet artistic director Sean Murray wisely deleted the
addled “afterpiece,” keeping the tone tight, fast-moving and generally quite
amusing. Using a broad comic style,
THE LOCATION: Cygnet Theatre, through
February 12.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Best Bet
THE SHOW: Sophocles’
THE STORY: After the death of Achilles,
the greatest warrior of the Trojan War, Agamemnon promises to bestow his armor
on the bravest of the Greeks. Judges are appointed to decide, and according to
the version of
The
play is extraordinary in several ways: it makes a hero out of a suicide, and
brings an Olympian god (Athena) onstage. It
juxtaposes bravery and hubris, self-aggrandizement and loss of self-esteem. It
asks what makes a hero. Is it the warrior or the manipulator (i.e., the
politician)? It’s easy to be swept up in the madness of war. All the characters
wish awful things on their enemies, while at the same time, respectfully
praying for the gods to smile on them and their allies. In ancient
The play holds
considerable resonance for today: from barbaric torture to fixed elections,
from the machinations of politicians to how we treat our war-ravaged veterans.
What is the place – or result -- of pride, humiliation, revenge? And
ultimately, how do we define a war ‘hero’ – is it the soldier or the
politician? Must the warrior die for honor? Can the politician employ
statesmanship and compromise without abusing power and manipulating outcomes?
As in ancient times, the jury is still out.
Marianne McDonald’s
translation is robust and lyrical, lucid and comprehensible. It shows the awful
ramifications of military madness and blood lust, and the need for an honest
sense of honor – and shame. It places
the emphasis on adaptability and compromise, pity, compassion and forgiveness. And as for our heroes? it’s not an
either/or proposition. We need both the warrior and the politician. And if they
play fair, exhibit honor and conscience, treat other humans humanely and take
responsibility for their acts, we should give them their just rewards.
THE PLAYERS, THE
PRODUCTION: The
production is spartan (no pun intended) but
provocative and compelling, though the cast is variable, with several
noteworthy performances. At the center, Laurence Brown is a force of nature as
the mad, untamed
THE LOCATION: 6th @ Penn
Theatre, through February 5.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Best Bet. We could all use a little reminder about the price of war and vengeance and
unchecked ruthlessness.
BOYS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN
THE SHOW: Beautiful Thing, by Liverpudlian Jonathan Harvey, is another tale of ‘the love
that dare not speak its name.’
THE SCOOP: There seems to be a limitless supply of
coming-out stories, or tales of hidden gay love. And now that the movies are
getting into the act, too (cf. “
THE STORY: Well, it’s far from the
wilds of
The
characters are fascinating, the dialogue is spicily regional, the relationships
are intriguing, the performances are terrific. It’s
the play that’s the weak link. Unmotivated details and untied threads abound.
But that didn’t stop the 1993 love story from becoming a 1996 film.
THE PLAYERS: Director Rosina Reynolds
has assembled an outstanding cast, and she gives them delicious stage business.
Matt Barrs is thoroughly likable and appealing as
Jamie, struggling with his emotions and identity. As Ste, Joseph Panwitz exhibits a credible macho exterior to mask his
sensitivity and pain. Angry Leah – Rachael Van Wormer, in a knockout
performance – also looking like a knockout
(with spiky black and pink hair and wild outfits) -- is obsessed with Mama Cass, escaping into the
dead singer’s past in some twisted effort to refashion her own. The drug scene
is pretty ridiculous, but she plays it brilliantly. Go-with-the-flow Tony is a
fairly extraneous, unnecessary character, but John DeCarlo
makes him a nice, supportive guy, not much of a go-getter, someone who doesn’t
bring all that much to the mix – except unconditional acceptance, which is a
rare commodity in this hardscrabble neighborhood. The most fascinating,
multi-faceted character is Sandra, and Jillian Frost nails her with a warm,
funny, angular, sexy, irresistible performance. Tough love, but she’s one
helluva mom.
THE PRODUCTION: David Weiner’s set
features undifferentiated attached brick apartments. One wilted hanging plant
bears testimony to Sandra’s first place prize in the Barman’s contest. Jeff
Miller did a fine job with the fight, and Jeff Fightmaster
does a fine job with the lights. Shulamit Nelson’s costumes are a hoot; Frost
and Van Wormer’s get-ups are especially yummy. Though the story is nothing new,
it’s tenderly and sensitively (but not sentimentally) told, and there’s plenty
of humor. You can also amuse yourself acquiring new expressions (like ‘bubble
and squeak’ or ‘spotted dick’ -- both yucky-sounding foods!). Come for the
weird foodstuffs; stay for the killer performances.
THE LOCATION: Diversionary Theatre,
through February 5.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Best Bet
SERVING UP A SLICE OF (IN)JUSTICE
THE SHOW: The Exonerated, by
husband-wife team Jessica Blank and Erik Jensen (both appeared in the indie film “At the End of the Day”)
THE SCOOP/THE STORY: Based on 40 interviews
the couple conducted with wrongfully convicted Death Row inmates, this piece
ran for 18 months Off Broadway (as a reading, with rotating celebrity casts)
and was made into a movie in 2005. The stories of one woman and five men are
presented as interwoven monologues, and they’re heart-breaking, gut-wrenching
tales of the miscarriage of justice, of bigots and racists, liars and political
opportunists, who helped to convict these prisoners and to keep them
incarcerated for years, sometimes decades, before some extraordinary
circumstance (assiduous students or attorneys or journalists) helped to get
them released, in one case just hours before a scheduled electrocution.
THE PLAYERS: Once again, Lynx founder/artistic
director Al Germani has assembled a spectacular cast, some of whom are becoming
stapes at his fledgling theater. He’s found his niche, with dark, daring,
disturbing theater (two Patté-winning ensemble pieces preceded this one: Jesus Hopped the A
Train and In Arabia We’d All Be Kings).
Each
actor is forced to dig way down, to plumb psychological depths that result in
an emotional crisis for almost every character (well, everyone except the three
monstrous representatives of the arresting officers, prosecutors, glib
witnesses, etc. – played with chilling Southern insouciance by Jonathan Sachs,
Andrew Kennedy and Bill Kehayias). It’s great to see
Ed Hofmeister back on the boards – as one of the
title characters – the others are Darrell Allbrighton,
Linda Libby, David B. Phillips, Walter Ritter and Lloyd Roberson II -- each of
whom tells a horrific story, not only of how they were framed and treated, but
how, after they fell in that deep, dark well, they scratched and clawed their
way out, trying to re-establish a life, and a sense of self, faith or
redemption. They are magnificent, broken and noble, beaten down but
indomitable. And well supported by the family members, played by Veronica
Murphy, Julie Sachs and Che Lyons. Libby’s and Hofmeister’s
stories are particularly ghastly (he told me he calls it “blood and guts
work”); both actors just rip your heart out.
THE PRODUCTION: There’s a terrifying
stillness to the production. Before the show begins, the characters sit in chairs,
splayed across the floor, each immobile, limp and crumpled as a collapsed
marionette. The light is dim; the pauses are frequent and deadly. The words are
harsh – and healing. There’s an angle here, to be sure; the play serves as an
indictment of the American legal system and its inherent fallibility, which
makes for a powerful argument against capital punishment.
Just
one (ancillary) question: Why does the theater itself have to be so dark (and
potentially dangerous)? Germani prowls around with a flashlight; the rest of us
stumble over the steps and risers and hope for the best. The actors may have to
sit in semi-darkness, but why the audience? As one friend put it, the whole
experience – finding the theater, getting in successfully and seeing the play –
is somewhat like visiting a haunted house.
THE LOCATION: Lynx Performance Space in
the
THE BOTTOM LINE: Best Bet
NEW PLAYS, YOUNG
PLAYWRIGHTS
The
21st annual Plays by Young Writers ‘05 is an outstanding conflation
of strong writing and powerful performances. I managed to see all but two plays
(one reading, one full production) and I was extremely impressed. This year’s
state competition winners seemed to be focused on entering adolescence and
establishing identity, but their takes on the subject were widely diverse and
wildly imaginative.
Consider
the 12-minute reading, Joe, the Tomato,
by 11 year-old Stephen Whiting, who attends High Tech Middle School in Point
Loma. He wrote his first play last spring, in DeAnna Driscoll’s drama class. It
concerns Joe (engaging Thomas Villegas) who’s 18 tomato years old and still
hasn’t turned red. He takes the risk of hopping off the vine prematurely,
trying to rush the process, with the help of his slightly older buddy, Mike
Tomato (funny Rhys Green). But the red paint peels, and Joe learns a lesson
about patience, timing and self-esteem. Two of the other readings, both by San
Diegans, concern young people finding their way in a new town, new school, new environment: Idaho Lament, by 13 year-old Ben Kelly
and Sara’s Volleyball Dreams, by Zoë
Sanchez, age 12. Both are brief but intriguing, and well performed -- by Olivia Espinosa, who effectively plays the
mother in both pieces, Thomas Villegas, Justin Lang and (excellent as the new kids)Fred Harlow
and Rhianna Basore.
The
full productions are especially provocative and extremely well directed and
performed. Matthew Bohrer, whom I considered one of
the Faces to Watch in 2002, has blossomed into a top-drawer talent. He’s outstanding
in Step
into the Night, by Kit Steinkellner, 18 (now
a junior at UCLA), directed by Glenn Paris.
Bohrer’s totally natural, believable and
unaffected as a highly literate young man bravely confronting cancer –
and the prom. Heartfelt writing, wonderful performance. Though we’d hate to lose him, here’s hoping
he gets into his first-choice college: Yale.
Fascinating that this angst-ridden adolescent, who finds
asking out a girl as harrowing as facing death, was written by a female. And equally interesting
that This Girl is a Bird, about a
woman feeling trapped in a relationship, was created by a guy. So much for writing exclusively about what you know.
Ruff
Yeager and Esther Emery justified the Outstanding Direction Pattés they just
won. Both marvelously incorporated dance into their productions. Emery directed
This
Girl is a Bird, by Will Alden, 16, of
Spanish
Rhapsody
concerns another new kid in a new class. This first play by 16 year-old La Jollan Emily Bookstein, who comes
from a musical family, was created after the writer realized that “the Meaning
of Life is simply a movie.” That ‘movie’ is acted out in a high school Spanish
class, after Eric (intense Alec Voorhies) reveals his
obsession with completing a piece of music left unfinished by his deceased
father. Ignored by a ditsy teacher (humorously stilted Cherry Lorenzana), he and his fellow students (adorably wacky and
energetic Dominque Alerno,
Remy Remigio and Michelle Rewoldt) act out their
lives, musically, filmically and with ultimate
enlightenment. Refreshingly intelligent and inventive piece,
excellently directed by Anne Tran.
The
Playwrights Project sponsors the second oldest young people’s playwriting
contest in the country. Isn’t this something you should get in on?
ON FLUTE, ON POINT, ON
TARGET
While
I was on a Youth kick, I caught a morning performance of an abridged version of
The
Magic Flute, collaboration between San Diego City Ballet and Classics
for Kids. The piece was created (and choreographed by Elizabeth Wistrich) in 2001, but it was perfect for the 2006
year-long San Diego celebration of Mozart’s 250th birthday. (Did you
know that
I was blown away by the high quality of this
production. Every detail and aspect was spectacular. The
27-musicians-strong Classics for Kids Philharmonic, under the assured direction
of Dana Mambourg (who introduced the piece to the 750
squirmy but incredibly attentive kids in the Birch Theatre), sounded lively,
confident and robust, with especially excellent flute solos by Ann Erwin.
The dancers were marvelous – particularly the leaps and entrechats of Timothy Coleman as Prince Tamino and the beautiful point-work of Mira Cook as
Princess Pamina. Gerardo Gil exhibited delightful
skill and humor as the cowardly bird-catcher, Papageno.
The animals and helpers/guides, mostly on point, were graceful and lovely,
sporting the imaginative costumes of David Heuvel and
Tamlin Henahan, with
fanciful masks by Clark Mires (long time no see at the theater!). The singers
were outstanding: Lisa Archibeque, so
vocally powerful as Yum-Yum in Lyric Opera’s recent Mikado, brings her glorious soprano to the role of Pamina.
The only complaint is that the condensed version
made the (already tricky and inconsistent) plotline even murkier. Good thing
the schools were given source material to review with the students in advance;
it’s hard to believe they’d be able to follow the storyline cold. But overall,
the production was very true to the source: magical, fanciful – and proof
positive that love and music conquer all.
Through
January 24, at the Birch North park Theatre and
If
you missed it, check out the link to the full, uncut-for-TV show at www.patteproductions.com),
where there are also lots of GREAT pictures of the fabulous event.
And
speaking of fabulous parts of it, I was blown away by Mike Buckley singing his
acceptance, though I couldn’t figure out how he knew what he was winning for (I
never leak that info). Well, mystery solved. His writer/wife, Patricia Morris
Buckley, told me that he’d written three
versions of the song – and just prayed that he wouldn’t mix up the names
from the various shows! Well, he did a stellar job! (We haven’t heard him sing
recently, but he did some great work in Lambs’ musicals).
COMING TO A THEATER NEAR
YOU…..
Monday, January 23… there are FOUR enticing readings:
at 6th@ Penn (Chronos Theatre Group’s Dr. Faustus), North Coast Rep ( a new play, Leon’s
Dictionary, by Stephanie Satie),
the Lyceum (Black Ensemble Theatre’s Two
Trains Running) and Diversionary (the Actors Alliance On Book/OnStage reading of The
Birthday Party).
It
speaks well for the theater community that we have so many options… but it sure
makes it hard to choose!!
..On January 24, This is Our Youth, the play that established the reputation of
playwright/screenwriter Kenneth Lonergan (The
Waverly Gallery, Lobby Hero) will be presented as a staged reading by
Brandon Walker, Rachael Van Wormer and Tom Zohar, directed by Joey Landwehr. The piece follows three disillusioned young folks
on the Upper West Side of
… Look out for Laura Bozanich, currently pretty
funny in Biedermann… reprising her outrageous Eve’s
Tail, two performances only: February 6 and 7, 8pm at Cygnet Theatre. Call
619-337-1526, www.cygnettheatre.com.
'NOT
TO BE MISSED!' (Critic’s Picks);
(For full text of all past reviews, use the Search
engine at www.patteproductions.com)
Plays By Young
Writers ‘05 –
this 21st installment is a particularly excellent one: outstanding
writing, directing and acting. Check it out before it’s gone.
The Magic Flute - a collaboration
between San Diego City Ballet and Classics for Kids. Gorgeous
costumes, dancing, music and singing. Celebrate Mozart’s birthday in
style; introduce him to a child!
Through January 24, at the Birch North Park Theatre and
Biedermann and the
Firebugs – wacky satire, hilarious
performances.
Cygnet
Theatre, through February 12.
6th
@ Penn Theatre, through February 5.
The Exonerated -- dark stories,killer
performances
Lynx
Performance Space in the
Pete ‘n’ Keely - A
funny, silly revue with knockout performances by Randall Dodge and Kristen
Mengelkoch, two of our most delightful and talented musical theater comics.
At the Ramona Mainstage
Theatre, through January 22.
Too Old for the Chorus,
But Not Too Old To Be a Star – if you haven’t had
your fill of menopausal musicals, this is great for a date (the guys remind us
it’s called MENopause). Excellent performances, some cute/clever bits
and songs.
At The Theatre in
To paraphrase the King, I have a dream…. That
everyone went to the theater regularly!
©2006 Patté
Productions Inc.