Photographed above (L-R): Tina Packer and Nigel Gore. Photo by Matthew Murphy
An oriental carpet surrounded by taupe cushions, scaffolding strewn with paint cans, and draped construction lights are the meager trappings that create the set for Tina Packer’s Women of Will, now playing in The Gym at Judson’s intimate theatre space. While Valerie Therese Bart’s décor is not prepossessing, it is the perfect metaphor for a play that is all about the structure and construction of Shakespeare’s female characters. The evening is not overdressed, just two actors performing scenes and monologues and casually giving explanations in between, but do not let these simplistic measures deceive—Women of Will is one of the most hypnotic, mesmerizing, and stimulating shows playing in fair NYC, where we lay our scene.
To read my full review please visit Theatre is Easy (theasy.com) or click this link: http://www.theasy.com/Reviews/2013/W/womenofwill.php
Review by: Ben Coleman aka The “Other” Ben on 1.14.13
(Photographed above L-R: Keith Nobbs and Jeremy Strong)
“What was he doing the great god Pan, down in reeds by the river?” These first lines of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s poem are the raw materials that Amy Herzog whittles into her newest play, The Great God Pan, playing at Playwrights Horizons through January 13th (hurry!). Though Herzog does not directly answer the question posed in Browning’s poem, it is clear that by “spreading ruin and scattering ban,” rascal gods like Pan are responsible for the upheaval of Herzog’s characters in her beautifully constructed and engaging play. Although Pan only exists in metaphor, the characters are as uprooted as the reeds he pulls from the riverbed; however, it is these tumultuous events that shape each character into their future selves.
Herzog’s memory-themed play is explored by finely drawn characters who struggle to piece together cloudy and forgotten events in their past, all the while considering how such events transform them unwittingly into the people they have become. The play opens when Jamie (Jeremy Strong) is asked to have coffee with his childhood friend Frank (Keith Nobbs), who he has not seen in over twenty years. The strange and uncomfortable meeting culminates when Frank confesses that he was molested by his father as a child, and is now trying to have him incarcerated. Jamie’s shock is multiplied when Frank asks if he too was victimized, and although Jamie’s preliminary response is an appalled “No!” further consideration leads him to wonder if he is not suppressing a disturbing memory from his childhood.
As Jamie pieces together his past he encounters a series of figures in his life who are dealing with varying degrees of memory loss and physical abuse—ranging from his unexpectedly pregnant girlfriend Paige (Sarah Goldberg) who is rebuilding her life after a dancing injury, to his former babysitter Polly (Joyce Van Patten) who is in the early phases of dementia. By incorporating subtle parallels with her supporting characters, Herzog creates a play that is thematically whole and solidly establishes herself as a mistress of construction and content (previous evidence can be found in works such as 4,000 Miles and After the Revolution). The characters share just enough similarities to produce a cohesive theatre experience, without overburdening the story or rendering it implausible. Herzog treats her characters with a sensitivity that allows them to become wholly human, for better or for worse; meanwhile keeping the audience in suspense as the mysteries of Jamie’s past are slowly uncovered.
Carolyn Cantor’s direction increases the tension bit by bit as the play progresses, thus moving the action forward at a swift pace. Mark Wendland’s metaphorical set nods to the compartmentalization of the mind, as sectional rooms and set pieces shift in and out of focus to convey the memories that we tuck away; and the nature sounds (designed by Darron L West) coupled with the greenery and foliage wallpapered on the scenery keeps the play rooted in its earthy and primal origins.
The actors are every bit as good, which should not come as a surprise when workhorses like Becky Ann Baker (Cathy), Peter Friedman (Doug), and Joyce Van Patten round out the cast. Jeremy Strong delivers a grounded performance in the leading role of Jamie; while there is something evidently rumbling underneath his smiling surface, Strong rarely betrays Jamie’s cool and collected nature. The emotional distance upheld by Strong contrasts the rawness of the characters portrayed by Nobbs and Goldberg, and when they share the stage it is like watching a tennis match with one participant swinging angrily while the other contemplates whether to even lift the racket—the experience is frustrating, sad, and all too familiar.
The Great God Pan proves to be a thoroughly engrossing night of theatre. Make no mistake; this is not an event like August: Osage County, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Death of a Salesman, or even Clybourne Park. What Amy Herzog has created is more delicate and quiet. Although it packs quite a punch, it is not a play that one turns over and over in one’s head during the following weeks. This is not a deterrent; Pan proves to be a very worthwhile evening, even if it ultimately fades into the recesses of our memory.
(The Great God Pan is playing at Playwrights Horizons through January 13th. Hurry! For more information visit http://www.playwrightshorizons.org/shows/plays/great-god-pan/)
