Review: VIA DOLOROSA: On the Road With David Hare

Via Dolorosa

Written by David Hare; Ryan Bates, Scenic Designer; Tyler Kinney, Costume Designer; Matt Guminski, Lighting Designer; Anna Burnham, Stage Manager

CAST: David Bryan Jackson

Performances through January 31 at New Repertory Theatre, Black Box Theater at the Arsenal Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown, MA; Box Office 617-923-8487 or www.newrep.org

The Via Dolorosa is a street within the Old City of Jerusalem that is said to be the route Jesus walked on the way to his crucifixion. Like so many places in Jerusalem, it holds great religious and historical significance. It seems fitting that British playwright David Hare borrowed its name for the title of his play that examines the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in which the opposing sides both lay claim to the holy land of their origin. In an effort to better understand the complexities of the region, Hare visited Israel and Palestine in 1997, intent upon writing a play based on his travels. Via Dolorosa is the culmination of interviews, conversations, and the author's observations and experiences, packaged in a compelling monologue and presented as the first of three shows in New Repertory Theatre's 3rd Annual Next Rep Black Box Festival.

David Bryan Jackson takes on the persona of Hare (who performed the play himself in its London premiere in 1998, and again in New York in 1999) and is an animated and amiable tour guide as he conversationally narrates his journey from London to the Middle East and back home again. Hare embarks with limited knowledge of the situation, but gets educated by his immersion into the daily lives of theater artists, politicians, historians, and Jewish settlers. While their political and religious views are all over the map, the thing they have in common is their passion for their positions and their country. In his meetings with a broad range of people, Hare can't help but find his previous assumptions challenged, and the audience is put in the same boat.

In approximately ninety minutes, the travelogue winds its way from Tel Aviv and Jaffa to an Orthodox Jewish settlement in Palestine, to Jerusalem, Gaza, and the Arab city of Ramallah, and back to Jerusalem where Hare traverses the Via Dolorosa and visits Yad Vashem, the museum of the Holocaust. In each location, Jackson introduces us to additional characters, differentiating them by posture, accent, and tone of voice. It is a virtuoso performance as he obliterates the considerable challenges of the one-man show, often making it feel as if he is not really alone on the stage. To give credit where it is also due, lighting designer Matt Guminski signals the presence of another character or another place with warm amber hues or an overhead spot, and minimal sound effects evoke the desolate Gaza Strip or the haunting Hall of Names at Yad Vashem.

One of the hallmarks of the production of Via Dolorosa is the minimalism of the design elements (against scenic designer Ryan Bates' backdrop of the Western Wall) which sharpens the focus on Jackson's delivery of Hare's narrative. His relaxed demeanor belies the seriousness of the subject matter and the commitment he brings to connecting with the audience, ensuring that he gets and keeps our attention from the moment he casually saunters onto the stage, through each leg of the journey, until the surprisingly powerful conclusion. The actor's understated passion provides the drum beat of the play, maintaining a steady rhythm for each step he takes along the storied path of the Via Dolorosa.

The Next Rep Black Box Festival continues with THE TESTAMENT OF MARY, January 30-February 28, at the Arsenal Center for the Arts, and BALTIMORE, February 10-28, at Boston University Theatre, Lane-Comley Studio 210, 264 Huntington Avenue, Boston

Photo credit: Katharine Burkhart / Katharine Burkhart Designs (David Bryan Jackson)

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