BWW Reviews: Glass Mind Theatre's FALLBEIL Is Full of Heart

The impressive a cappella singing in German that opens this emotional production sets the bittersweet tone for the parallel, at times intertwining, wartime stories that unravel on stage in Glass Mind Theatre's Fallbeil. Set in Munich 60 years apart, Else's struggle over her brother's terrible fate as a result of the War in Iraq, presumably, is juxtaposed with German icon Sophie Scholl's execution by guillotine ("fallbeil" is the German word for the device) for her involvement in the White Rose nonviolent resistance movement during the country's Third Reich.

Beautifully written by local-ish playwright Liz Maestri, Fallbeil examines fear, and humans' reaction to it, from countless perspectives. It's about sisters' fear of losing their brothers, who once supported and sustained them; it's about the fear of making life-altering decisions and of fighting for or letting go of long-held beliefs; and, perhaps most poignantly, it's about the fear of forgetting and of being forgotten.

As Else comes undone while her brother-apparently her one remaining family member-is maintained by life support, she turns to the ghost of Sophie Scholl for solace, visiting the heroine's grave to leave white roses. Sophie, still awaiting Paradise along with her brother, Hans, who was also executed for his involvement in the White Rose, reaches out to Else from the Great Beyond, asking if she'll be her friend and sharing memories of the troubling times in which she lived.

Through flashback vignettes to Nazi Germany, masterfully portrayed through creative, two-level set design (Jeremiah Jones) and effective lighting design (Kelvin Pittman), the Scholls' sad tale comes to life. Rachael Lee Rash's Sophie is so tender and lovable-at times bright eyed, headstrong and hopeful, sometimes wracked with pain and guilt over the careless mistake that ultimately led to her own and her brother's demise-that the audience is moved to tears along with her. She is a heroine's heroine, driven by love for her country and for humanity, and she upholds her innocence to the very end: "I have done nothing wrong," she says again and again in response to a Nazi interrogator.

Her relationship with Else, an equally strong, complex character effectively played by Jacqueline Chenault, is so interesting because of the women's need for each other and because of the world's changed perspective of war in the half-century-plus that separates their existence. They examine the meaning of bravery, Sophie herself saying, "Was I very brave or very stupid?" Else prods at the philosophical question of whether dying for a cause is ever worthwhile.

While Rash and Chenault offer the production's standout performances, the entire cast is remarkably even. Joshua Buursma's Karl--Else's "best and only friend," she says--candidly and palpably struggles with his own fears of losing two friends at once: Else's brother and Else herself, who lashes out at him as he struggles to support her through the painful process of deciding whether or not to "pull the plug." Vince Constantino as Hans Scholl and Maxwell Heaton as Fritz, Sophie's boyfriend turned Hitler Youth, are both believable in their passion for opposing ideologies, although Heaton imbues his role with a bit more color than Constantino, whose intensity of delivery comes off as slightly monotone. It is Constantino, however, who provides some of the play's only comic relief, expressing irritation over his sister's greater fame (Hans was, after all, the founder of the White Rose) while she quietly gloats.

Alexander Scally's direction is top notch, orchestrating action on two levels, across two centuries and seamlessly bridging reality and fantasy. If anything, the plays runs a little long (at about two hours with a 10-minute intermission), and there are a couple of moments when emotion runs wild and becomes somewhat overblown. Additionally, the effort to portray Sophie's execution through a shadow screen is unsuccessful; it's hard to decipher what exactly is occurring.

Still, the production is mesmerizing: painful, poignant and full of heart. It reminds us, decades into a conflict that quietly rages on overseas, that "war always hurts," as Sophie says, and encourages us never to forget the value of those who have sacrificed their lives for the greater good.

Fallbeil runs Friday-Sunday through next Sunday, Nov. 24, at the Strand Theater, 1823 N. Charles St. Its next production, The All-American Genderfuck Cabaret, opens in March. For more information, visit www.glassmindtheatre.com.

images courtesy of Britt Olsen-Ecker Photography

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