Review: BACK THE NIGHT Clouded by Doubt

Back the Night

Written by Melinda Lopez, Directed by Daniela Varon; Stage Manager, L. Arkansas Light; Scenic Design, Rob Eastman-Mullins; Lighting & Sound Design, David Wilson; Costume Design, Rachel Padula Shufelt; Props Artisan, Misaki Nishimiya

CAST: Melissa Jesser, Amanda Collins, Evan Horwitz, Michael Underhill, Stephanie Clayman, John Kooi

Performances through February 28 at Boston Playwrights' Theatre, 949 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA; Box Office 866-811-4111 or www.bostonplaywrights.org.

We live in a violent world and ivy-covered college campuses are not immune from the scourge. While men may also be victims, violence against women includes harassment, stalking, physical assault, and sexual assault. In her new play Back the Night at Boston Playwrights' Theatre, Melinda Lopez tackles the theme through the experiences of Cassie, a feminist blogger, and her best friend Em after a late-night assault on the former sparks an investigation that explodes into a witch hunt. Fraternity brothers, college officials, and a woman Senator up for re-election, each with their own agenda, are caught up in the maelstrom, while the incident drives a wedge between the two friends.

The play starts with a jolt when Cassie (Amanda Collins), holding a compress to her bleeding forehead, and her gay buddy Sean (Evan Horwitz) stumble into Em's (Melissa Jesser) room. While walking alone near the observatory, Cassie had been jumped by a man (or men?) and clobbered with a blunt instrument, causing a gash that required stitches. Her friends take her to the infirmary, and then they meet with campus security (John Kooi). His questions foreshadow some of the discrepancies that crop up in Cassie's story as the play unfolds, although at this early juncture it is plausible that she could have some confusion recalling details in her post-traumatic state. When it is revealed that she has advocated breaking up the fraternities in her blog, possible enemies emerge and the first seeds of blame are planted.

Em's boyfriend Brandon (Michael Underhill) is an understanding good guy who happens to be in one of the fraternities that Cassie has targeted. After he promises Em that he'll try to find the culprit, he addresses a meeting of his brothers seeking information, but is met with derision and comments like "she deserved it." In the meantime, Em plays detective with Cassie, continually questioning her to sharpen the details of her story, but it begins to look like Em has doubts. Her denial of the pervasiveness of the situation draws harsh remarks from Sean who is blindly supportive of Cassie and gets involved in planning a campus-wide march with her to draw attention to the problem. They get support from a Dean (Stephanie Clayman) and, unexpectedly, from the Clintonesque Senator (also Clayman), who just happens to be Em's distant mother.

To get to the bottom of Lopez's layered script is like removing wallpaper in an old house. At first glance, everyone can agree that violence against women is bad and something must be done to stop it. However, it is more complicated and nuanced than that as Cassie is a self-appointed crusader and Em is inclined to take a wait and see attitude, not unlike the college President (Kooi) who rushes to defend the Greek system of which he himself was a member. However, the Dean and the Senator stir the pot by agreeing that the frats help to foment a culture of sexism, at best, and violence against women, at worst, and that nothing has changed in thirty years. Cassie becomes a totem for their cause and seizes her moment, convincing Em that she must be a dissembling opportunist. By the time we find out what secrets Em is holding onto, it doesn't seem all that surprising and it sheds light on her confrontational behavior with her boyfriend and her mother.

Director Daniela Varon builds the drama and suspense with her pacing, and the cast members help by moving furniture and props during the frequent scene breaks. The scenic design by Rob Eastman-Mullins suggests various campus structures and the interior of a dorm, while David Wilson (lighting and sound design) adds texture and helps to delineate locations. Rachel Padula Shufelt (costume design) helps the actors in their multiple roles by appropriate attire for Clayman as the Senator vs. the doctor, and Kooi as the President vs. the cop and the reporter. The college students wear what's typical for their characters, with Sean sporting colorful, neat clothing, and Brandon being a little sloppy, topped off with the de rigueur backwards baseball cap.

The peeling back of the layers in Back the Night is an effective means of telling the story and holds our interest, but the creeping doubt is troubling in a play that so obviously wishes to put a spotlight on the cultural problem of violent assaults on women. Here is a quote from a blurb in the press release: "Sometimes you do the wrong thing for the right reason." There are a couple of characters to whom that might apply, but it sends the wrong message, in my view. The subject matter of the play is compelling and the performances are authentic, both of which merit serious discussion. May I suggest that doubting or blaming the victim is not the way to move the needle.

Photo credit: Kalman Zabarsky (Amanda Collins - top, Melissa Jesser - bottom)

To post a comment, you must register and login.