REVIEW: "Garden" – Brothers vs. Sisters at Mobtown

Under the name Just Outside the Garden, The Mobtown Players are presenting two one-act plays as part of the 2006 Baltimore Playwrights Festival.  As that title suggests, both have gardens and the outdoors as settings, and thematically the two are similar, hence their pairing.  Beyond that, the two are pretty dissimilar, which overall, offers an interesting, but not completely fulfilling, evening of theatre. 

 

The first play, SOD by Mark Squirek tells the story of three brothers at the start of the sod-laying season in Central Maryland.  Much has been made about the intensity of foul language in the play - from director Ryan Whinnem's notes in the program to a lengthy explanation in the playwright's notes posted outside the theatre.  There are even apologies for it in the play - under the thinnest of excuse - a young boy is on the scene and the door is open where his mother might also hear.  The truth is the extreme use of "bad words" is the most honest aspect of the characters, and ultimately speaks to the theme of the play, none of which would even be mentioned, apologized for, or probably as directly dealt with were it about other difficult themes like racism, poverty or the like.  (Has Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" really gotten us this far?) In fact all of it detracts from the play.  Author, director and producer should have just let the piece speak for itself, foul mouth and all.  It isn't particularly jarring or humorous or off-putting, though one marvels at just how many variations there are to the f-word.  You see, first of all, the men in the play probably would swear as much as they do - they only use it in a negative way when angry, otherwise it is a natural part of their language and dialectic cadence.  And second of all, just like they don't notice it unless it is pointed out, after a few minutes, the audience doesn't notice it either.  Thematically, it fits as well, and therefore is even less in need of apology.  Each brother, like all people, has a past that has moments that they aren't particularly proud of.  And those moments have created, over the years, varying levels of personal and familial issues, which, as in most families, has been dealt with by covering it over with displaced anger, ignoring the problem, and a whole mess of self-denial.  The problems this trio of brothers face would make most of us swear like sailors, and for them, swearing is a macho posturing tool to cover feelings and to create "anger" to avoid pain, just as the sod they lay is an artificial covering of the ground. 

This play is a study in male dynamics - the testosterone flying about the room rivals that of Gold's Gym.  Add to that disagreements over religion (one brother has found God) and secrets revealed that put into question the "natural order of family" (the eldest brother has been overlooked in a major decision), and you have a relatively complex play.  Mr. Squirek, for the most part, scores.  The play is lean, non-didactic, universal, thought-provoking and ultimately entertaining.  There are only two places in the script (and the staging of it) that seem a little too much of a reach, too "stagy", too "let's be artistic."  When two of the brothers reach epiphanies about their lives, they go upstage lay in recesses in the stage and cover themselves with sod.  The effect, rather than powerful, is heavy-handed and raises more questions than are necessary - are they dead and buried?  Have they just let their circumstances overrule their lives?  Are they just covering up yet again?  The rest of the play should have taken care of it, but seems to end just when those epiphanies should have resulted in some closure.  And oddly, considering the play is part of the Baltimore Playwrights Festival, the times that the characters talk about the Baltimore area are the most out of place and most artificial sounding.  The local references are unnecessary, and seem thrown in to keep a local audience interested.  Instead it is distracting. 

 

The second play, The Return of the Fifth Sister by Kimberley Lynne also addresses the family dynamic, though from a strictly female perspective.  At times quite clever and funny and at other times thought provoking, the play also suffers from an identity crisis of sorts.  It tries very hard (too hard, perhaps) to be all things to all playgoers.  Is it a comedy with political/gender identity themes?  Is it a mystical fairy tale?  Is it a satire about religion?  Is it trying to be an Oprah's Book Club selection?  The result is a play where, for the first ten minutes or so, you have no idea what is happening aside from the return of a long lost sister, who poses some sort of threat for many reasons, none of them known to us.  Yes, Lynne's move here is to get us so involved that we go on the journey as the tale unravels before us and we are astonished and pleased as each revelation hits us.  Would that were so.  The play as it stands now is a cross between The Heidi Chronicles, The Creation of the World, and Into the Woods, as filtered through each of The View's host's points of view.  The opening moments are so full of plot points and characters talking about a past without any context, that it comes perilously close to making the audience not care enough to go along.  Add to that a ton of dialogue that sounds a little too purposely arty and a slew of ostentatious lines that are meant clearly to be profound but come across like fortune cookie fortunes, and you get a jumbled mess.  This playwright clearly has a gift, though.  Many passages are beautifully written, near poetic, and engrossing.  But every time she comes close to really getting us involved, a bizarre twist of plot happens or worse yet, her own cleverness gets the better of her.  It is that cleverness that gets in the way several times - it comes across like we are listening to someone in love with her own voice, all the while sacrificing meaning for being clever. 

And just like SOD was distinctly male, Return is distinctly female, and much more in depth emotionally, in much deeper search for meaning.  But again, that depth is heavy handed, and doesn't let the story speak for itself.  It is heavy with Biblical wisdom and verse, and overtly mystical ideas like the coming together of earth, wind, fire and water.  The characters say things like "Women aren't allowed to write.  It's a sin." So of course, the 5^th sister inundates the rest with scraps of paper that literally rain down covered with charming sayings like "time is linear" and "there is order in chaos".  Things like that make me wonder why a sign doesn't come down that says, "SYMBOL HERE!!!"  How "interesting" that they live just outside of Yonder, and Plain is nearby.  Naturally, to keep the renaissance festival set happy, the bad guys (and they are literally all guys) are known "mystically" as The Elders, and have names like Roy (as in King) and Earl (as in Lord), while the two "good guys" mentioned are Joseph and Judah.  And the women and female livestock have such names as Charity, Hope, Faith, Mercy, Plenty and Simplicity.  Perhaps another bad guy could have been named Pretentious. 

The most truly clever and interesting thing here is the plot itself, coupled with the 5^th sister's name, neither of which I will give away.  What Ms. Lynne has is a brilliant idea.  And the play has all the makings of true brilliance, to be sure.  What it needs is a playwright willing to let go of her own smug cleverness, clarify and trim some of the symbolism (and maybe trim a good 15 minutes off in the process) and pick maybe two plot devices.  Yet, for all of its frustrations, The Return of the Fifth Sister is still enjoyable, due in part to great pacing, interesting direction, good lighting effects (by Kerry Brandon), and a winning cast. 

 

The acting is also uniformly quite good in both plays.  Mr. Whinnem has assembled two terrific casts, who not only make the most of the text given, but actually improve upon it by making their performances so intriguing.  In SOD, all four actors do fine work.  Steve Kovalic, as the extremely troubled oldest brother plays the part with amazing layers and a pleasing mix of joy and pathos.  He plays anger like a master - not one cliche in the entire performance, resulting in a character that could easily have been a stereotype, but is instead surprising, deep and both frustrating and sympathetic. Jake Rothermel, another local actor who is uniformly good and interesting no matter what show he is in, does not disappoint here, either.  As the middle brother, he is given the least to do - he is mostly peacekeeper, and how he ends up is a perplexing loose end to the play.  But he absolutely shines and is ultimately interesting in each movement, line and even in silence.  Not an easy task.  As the youngest brother, the one who has found inner peace with religion, Shaun Gould also does fine work, though at first he comes across as a little bland and monotone.  It is only after some of his character is revealed that one understands that level of measured calm.  When he reaches his epiphany toward the end of the play it is powerful.  All four men (including a silent, but interesting Andrew Lee as the boy Johnny, who watches everything) bring strong muscled characterizations that prove men are often like sod - a practical, but ultimately artificial covering for what is really at root - emotions. 

 

Each of the four women in The Return of the Fifth Sister is also terrific.  And whether by design or by sheer coincidence, each actress is a different ethnicity, which silently adds a poignant layer to this complex work.  It speaks for itself and is powerful in its statement. Janise Whelan as the oldest sister Prudence does a magnificent job as leader, mother-figure, tower of strength, and is deeply affecting when she reveals a love lost.  Loandra Torres, as the youngest sister Grace, has the hardest journey mainly because her character is the least clarified, and is simply delightful.  She navigates the rough waters the playwright has given her and makes her final moments of realization meaningful.  Charity, played by Nia Graham, has a whole lot happen to her, and Graham also has such a firm grasp on the character, it is joy to watch both the actress and character makes sense of all that is going on.  She plays nervous, funny and wise with equal assuredness, and therefore provides a much-needed anchor to the play.  Finally, as Hope, the "scientific sister" Lydia Real is charming, has superb comic delivery and makes what could have been a very off-putting character both ingratiating and sympathetic.  All four women make even the most unbelievable plot twist believable, because all four clearly believe in what they are doing.  They are strong, cerebral, and feminine counterparts to their equally strong, hardened, and masculine cast mates.

 

Both playwrights, the director and the casts and crew are to be congratulated on fine efforts with difficult pieces.  Problems aside, the evening is challenging and entertaining - the perfect mix for an evening of theatre.

 

 

WHO: Mobtown Players & Baltimore Playwright's Festival  WHAT: 2 One-Acts Plays: SOD and The Return of the 5^th Sister  WHEN: Thurs - Sat at 8PM, Sun at 3PM through August 19.  TICKETS & INFO:  $12/Gen $10 Students & Seniors  www.mobtownplayers.com

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