Page 132 - Phoenix1999-2000

Thursday, March9,2000-Page 12 FEATURES "The House Bernarda Alba" captured audiences' ested in money and outward appearances youngest and most passionate of the daugh- than their happiness. ters, does not care about disobeying her Because Bernarda can only afford one mother if it means that she can spend time dowry, the eldest daughter is the only one with him. On the part, Conner commented, allowed 10 marry and leave home. The "It's more than [freeing herself]. She's in younger four must stay single and childless. love with him and obsessed with him." What Bernarda sees as a practicality is justi- The play was extremely well acted, and fiably perceived as a punishment. The focus had a very intense emotional core. The ac- of the plot is the examination of the effects tresses portraying the daughters keep their of that punishment. behavior and feelings toned down and Krysta Dawn Stacy played Bernarda, and showed little emotion while they really had whata tremendous job she did. You could so much passion just waiting to explode: see how intense and demanding the part was The roles of the two servants, (played by by her wrenchingly emotional expressions. Megan Townsend and Faye Ingram) were The actresses playing the daughters also had used to co~vey the inner turmoil of the out- difficult roles, trying to portray the horrible wardly normal home. The daughters of Bernada"Alba wrestle their senile grandmother (Alison Smith) afte;~hNe OWEN ~~J::ssion and yearning for freedom in their duc!~~: a~~i~~~: t:~t~:~~ ~~:~~~~ hi;~:~~ escaped from her confinement. The one man in the play, Pepe el Romano, allowing them to see what really goes on in- JOAN FAULKNER of-the-century performance is that of a Span- is the most handsome man in town, whom side it as opposed to what everyone in town SrajJWriler ish household ruled by an old tyrant named all the daughters are in love with. Pepe thinks. When one first sees "The House of Bernarda Alba. She presides over a house- (played by Albert Pero III) is seen periodi- Since they see what goes on in the house, Bernarda Alba," which was performed at hold filled with silence, darkness, and long- cally throughout the scenes strutting his stuff, but do not actually interact with the house- Alumni Hall February 25-27 and March 2- ing. and Flamenco dancing. hold, they are there for the audience to know 4, one might be really confused by this emo- It is very cloistered and Alba manages it Director Ron Miller described him by that the outside world is still sane, just the tiona! play. under the shadow of the church, which is be- saying, "he's a demon and devil, but all the household isn't. Although it takes a while to stay with ing affected by passionate resistance. Her life [the daughters] have." The entire cast and crew obviously put a the story and try to understand its message, husband has just died and she makes her five Miller added the Pepe figure (which is lot of time and energy (viewed by audience the effects are extremely rewarding. daughters stay closed up in the house for not present in most productions) because he as lack their of), into making the playa very Going in, I expected there to be a tragic eight years as part of the "proper" mourning saw Pepe as poetic to the play and wanted to emotional experience. atmosphere, but never such an intense, al- period. "make him into a dream figure." The highs and lows' that "The House of most spiritual experience. It seemed as if Bemarda doesn't let them have any free- All the daughters yearn for Pepe, al- Bernarda Alba" present are harrowing in what I was watching didn't seem to be part dam at all. She scolds them for crying and though no man could ever bear the weight their depth. What will happen to each of the of this life at all. demands them to obey her or else she will of what these poor women have conjured up daughters in the future is left to the imagi- Written by Federico Garcia Lorea, the very likely inflict her cane on them. Although in their minds for so long. nation, but in my mind, these empty lives play is set in the 1930s. The plot of this turn- she loves her daughters, she is more inter- Adela (played by Laura Conner), the are not worth living. Audience not captivated by "The Hostage" at Center Stage mance was a few hours longer we would care S/(JjJWriler more for the nearly two dozen important On the 23 of February I saw Irene Lewis's characters. However, I do not think I could version of Brendan Behan's ''The Hostage" handle Miss Gilchrist much longer with her at Center Stage. I usually compose a quick acidic personality and generally annoying review commenting on aspects that I find character. particularly interesting. Unfortunately, I am I was most displeasedthat she was not at a loss here. It was the most disappointing shot at the end. That might happen in the professional production I have ever attended. third act. I hope so. I can think of nothing that would impart Anyway, in the current production no one you with the unpleasant taste that is still left emerges from the ensemble. Each character in my mouth. I have never given a poor re- emerges from the plethora of cast tfaembers view for a Center Stage production and I feel on stage for a short moment and then returns somewhat dispirited that I am forced to do without leaving the slightest impression. All so at this moment. I see is a bunch of people drinking and ger- The Hostage takes place in a brothel, ling it on in grand fashion. which encompasses the entire Head Theater. Refrain from viewing this play. Irene Pub-style chairs and tables litter the floor for Lewis was stellar in her direction of Oscar the audience and a fully functional bar is lo- Wilder's "An Ideal Husband" earlier in the cated at the back. The assimilation of the year, but "The Hostage" pales in compari- audience into the brothel is quite marvelous. son. She includes several clever ideas, but The fascinating atmosphere at least made the they do not seem to mesh as anything greater. play tolerable. Peter Rogan (L) and Willy Conley star in "The Hostage" at Head Theater There are some talented actors repre- ... The characters emerge from the crowd connections. As the gallows are being pre- other on their respective inadequacies. Un- sented such as Willy Conley who is well to take the stage, joining in an Irish jig for pared for the hanging of a young Irish boy, fortu~ately, it reduces down to a mere nov-> known for his appearances on the children's good measure. The music dies and we be- the Irish Republican Army (IRA) responds elty like the open bar and the sign language. program, "Festival Hl" .. gin to learn the many facets of each charac- by kidnapping a young British soldier (Reese They are good ideas, but they really do not Peter Rogan's makes his third appearance ter. Pat (Peter Rogan), a crippled veteran of Madigan). present the play in any unique fashion. in this particular play after performing in the Anglo-Irish War is the owner of the The brothel is commissioned to detain the The play ends. I know that much because Connecticut and New York. I did not really brothel. soldier until the authorities' free the Irish teen- we all clapped, the lights turned on, and they notice anything exceptional regarding his He tells a few stories of the good old days, ager. With this twist, Irene Lewis's brilliance graciously allowed us to leave. Other than performance. and gives his charity to Monsewer, his se- comes forth again with her use of Irish sign that, I have no clue how it ended. I imagine that is indicative of the play, as nile compatriot in the war. language. I know tiny specifics like who shot. whom well. Brahan's original work was written in Meanwhile, his girlfriend, Meg Dillon She incorporates an IRA associate (Willy and all that rot, but I do not know what hap- Gaelic and was quite serious. No doubt (Caitlin O'Connell), dresses the beds, serves Conley) who is deaf and uses sign language pened. I took a friend along and she did not something was lost in the translation. the Guinness. and shares some tales of her to communicate. It is another remarkable know either. I even asked other people and If you do not mind a bar with a $26 cover own. idea that gives the play so much potential. listened in on severat-conversanons, yet all charge then you might want to take in the Rio Rita (Tom Flynn) and Princess Grace The story continues with the British sol- of us were oblivious. Head Theater Cabaret at Center Stage. In- (Kyle Primous), frequent one of the many dier endearing himself to the brothel with Maybe there is a third act. r imagine it is stead of a lousy cover band playing in the rooms located in the brothel, yet still have his stories of the orphanage and cricket possible that I left during the second inter- corner, you get a marginal play to watch. The enough energy to assault a communist and - Lewis's ingenuity emerges once more as mission. Or else it was one of those choose- Hostage is running until April 2. Tickets sing a catchy tune about their sexuality. Miss Meg Dillon breaks out into song and then your-awn-adventure type plays where you range from $24-29, depending on the show Gilchrist (Jennifer Smith) rounds out the supposedly sings an extra verse about the make up the ending yourself. time. notable elements of the brothel with her re- brutality between the Irish and the British. ''The Hostage" is just plain disappoint- Center Stage is located at 700 N. Calvert Jigious hypocrisy. The cast breaks out of their roles ing. The characters are superficial and lack Street, Baltimore, MD 21202. Call (410) The central story arises from Pat's war and accents, proceeding to lambaste each any emotional pull. Perhaps, if the perfor- 332-0033 for tickets.