THE BASICS: The local premiere of Christopher Durang’s acclaimed absurdist comedy/satire of 2009. A production of the Subversive Theatre Collective, it plays weekends (minus Easter Sunday) at the Manny Fried Theatre in the Great Arrow building, through April 12th. Thomas LaChiusa directs a cast of seven. The play runs about two hours with its ten minute intermission.
THUMBNAIL SKETCH: WHY TORTURE… poses this fundamental question: What if you woke up one morning and found a stranger in your bed, and it seems that, under the influence of alcohol and rape date drugs, you actually married him, and he won’t tell you much of anything about himself, including his profession (if any), and you think he might be a terrorist, and your mother is too spacey to talk with about this, and your wackball father, who seems to be a part of some kind of “shadow government”, would rather use intensive interrogation techniques on this guy than try to get you the annulment you are desperate to obtain? What then?
THE PLAY, THE PLAYERS AND THE PRODUCTION: Playwright Durang is in top form here, gleefully skewering contemporary American culture. TORTURE is keen satire, often wickedly funny. That it cannot sustain its two hour length, and that Durang could not come up with any kind of decent ending, are issues, but not as major as you might think. Caveat: If you are the sort of person who buys into what now appear to be mainstream Republican values, you will want to stay miles away from this one!
Director LaChiusa has put together a strong ensemble, and enlivens things further with some impish cross-gender casting. Christopher Standart, as Felicity’s dotty mom, Luella, is a particular standout. Parading about in a series of frightening floral frocks, and chattering endlessly about the one thing that excites her, the theater, Standart’s Luella is a gem, played with hilarious deadpan civility. Also really funny is Victor Morales as Leonard, Felicity’s whacky, hot-headed dad. Morales executes the role’s many hairpin turns between vicious and sweet with real aplomb. He’s a big asset to the production (double entendre intended).
Andea Andolina’s Felicity is OK; young, blonde and flummoxed. Michael Votta, who plays her newly minted husband, Zamir (he insists that this is an Irish name!), is likewise satisfactory. In Votta’s case, though, the part is a dandy—brimming with quick-flipping, Jeckyll-and-Hyde-like dialog, a la Leonard. Votta looks good in the role; would that he were naturally funnier.
James Cichocki, as the genial stoner, Reverend Mike (the priest/ porno filmmaker who saw fit to marry Felicity and Zamir), and Mike Seitz as Hildegarde, Leonard’s torch-carrying, shadow government sweetie, both add zest and laughs. Becky Globus capably rounds out the cast as the Narrator, Etc.
Director LaChuisa kept me laughing big time for the first hour. Things whiz along with typical Durangian abandon. Too bad about the length, and the ending. Hey, maybe there was just no way to provide a satisfying, upbeat ending for this skewering of the American Culture of Violence. Maybe, in the final analysis, it’s not so much of a laughing matter…
IN SUM: Vintage Durang. Pretty darn hilarious. Conservatives need not apply.
*HERD OF BUFFALO (Notes on the Rating System)
ONE BUFFALO: This means trouble. A dreadful play, a highly flawed production, or both. Unless there is some really compelling reason for you to attend (i.e. you are the parent of someone who is in it), give this show a wide berth.
TWO BUFFALOS: Passable, but no great shakes. Either the production is pretty far off base, or the play itself is problematic. Unless you are the sort of person who’s happy just going to the theater, you might look around for something else.
THREE BUFFALOS: I still have my issues, but this is a pretty darn good night at the theater. If you don’t go in with huge expectations, you will probably be pleased.
FOUR BUFFALOS: Both the production and the play are of high caliber. If the genre/content are up your alley, I would make a real effort to attend.
FIVE BUFFALOS: Truly superb–a rare rating. Comedies that leave you weak with laughter, dramas that really touch the heart. Provided that this is the kind of show you like, you’d be a fool to miss it!