'The Cook' Sizzles, 'Anna in the Tropics' Fizzles

Two dramas by acclaimed Cuban-American playwrights Eduardo Machado and Nilo Cruz are currently trying to take the chill out of a long New England winter, with mixed results. While "The Cook" manages to stir up quite a bit of heat under the direction of Michael John Garcés at Hartford Stage, "Anna in the Tropics" barely breaks a sweat at Boston's SpeakEasy Stage. Both plays – the first set in Castro's revolutionary Havana, Cuba and the second in Prohibition-era Tampa, Florida – promise a heady fusion of politics and passion. "The Cook" delivers ample portions of each. "Anna" barely whets the appetite.

"The Cook"

Written by Eduardo Machado; Directed by Michael John Garcés; Scenic Design by Adam Stockhausen; Costume Design by Elizabeth Hope Clancy; Lighting Design by Ben Stanton; Sound Design by David Lawson; Composer, Jose Conde

Cast in order of appearance:

Gladys, Zabryna Guevara

Carlos, Felix Solis

Adria/Lourdes, Monica Perez-Brandes

Julio, Che Ayende

Rosa/Elana, Joselin Reyes

Performances: Now through March 27

Box Office: 860-527-5151 or www.hartfordstage.org

Eduardo Machado's spicy concoction, "The Cook," is an enticing play that examines how Fidel Castro's revolutionary takeover of Cuba changed the lives of both the aristocracy who fled his regime and the working class families who stayed behind to carry on in their absence. Set in the servant's kitchen of a grand Havana mansion and spanning four decades from 1958 through 1997, "The Cook" whisks the explosiveness of political ideologies into the mundane activities of everyday life to deliver a volatile stew that first simmers then boils with the heat of social and personal pressures.

The first act opens on a bustle of New Year's Eve preparations with the title character, Gladys, running her kitchen as efficiently as a general in command of her troupes. Brandishing her chef's knife with the skillful aplomb of a seasoned five-star veteran, Zabryna Guevara as Gladys smoothly chops, stirs, assembles and arranges a parade of delicacies on doily-lined serving trays, all while simultaneously choreographing the movements of her dutiful wait staff. Included among the servers for the evening are her husband, Carlos, and cousin Julio. While Carlos, played with just the right mix of adoration and machismo by Felix Solis, is a reluctant recruit in his wife's culinary army, Julio, played with panache by Che Ayende, is an eager protégé.

The excitement of ushering the New Year in with the Senora Adria Santana's numerous important guests, including President Batista himself, turns quickly to panic when word spreads that Castro plans to invade Havana the next morning. The hosts make a hurried backdoor escape, leaving a bewildered but loyal Gladys suddenly in charge. Entrusted with maintaining the mansion and conducting business as usual until the uprising is over, Gladys becomes the apolitical rock representative of everyday Cubans who, through pride and perseverance, somehow manage to survive.

For the next 40 years, Gladys tends to her cooking. In 1972, when Cuba's only ally is the Soviet Union and the rest of the world refuses to trade with her country, Gladys adjusts the ingredients of her recipes accordingly. When her husband becomes a leader in Castro's government and claims the Santana estate as his own, she makes tamales – comfort food for troubled souls. Finally, when Castro opens his Cuban borders to American tourists once again – enticing the very capitalist dollars that he condemned when he embraced Communism – Gladys serves lunches to the returning aristocracy. When one visitor turns out to be the daughter of her beloved Adria for whom she has kept the mansion operating all these years, harsh realities explode between the two. After years of blind loyalty and hopeful waiting, Gladys at last becomes emancipated. Guevara makes this a riveting moment that almost compels the audience to applaud.

Machado's dialog resonates with Latin rhythms, wit and passion, and the Hartford Stage cast is very comfortable making lyrical metaphors sound like everyday language. Guevara as Gladys and Solis as Carlos, in particular, interact with each other as if gliding imperceptibly through a lifelong song and dance. First young and optimistic, then jaded and angry, then finally worldly wise and reflectively philosophical, this talented tandem easily transforms the heated sparring of their characters' idealistic youth into the gentle teasing of sharp-minded elders who, over the years, have developed a deep and abiding mutual respect.

The remaining cast members also ably express the music of the playwright's inventive writing. As an ensemble they ebb and flow together at a pace that seems completely natural. Monica Perez-Brandes, as both Adria and her daughter Lourdes, is haughty without being harsh but also wounded despite her privilege. Che Ayende as Julio is heartbreakingly vulnerable as the young man whose homosexuality leaves him abandoned by the revolution. In the final act, Joselin Reyes creates sparks as Carlos' daughter, Elana, the hard-working and devoted offspring who represents the hope for Cuba's future.

The Hartford Stage production of "The Cook" is a rich blend of politics, promise, disillusionment, and survival. It celebrates the ability of a country's cultural heritage to endure despite the social upheavals caused by the people in power. Filling and flavorful, this feast satisfies the heart and mind.

"Anna in the Tropics"

Written by Nilo Cruz, Directed by Daniel Jáquez, Set Design by Susan Zeeman Rogers, Lighting Design by Linda O'Brien, Costume Design by Amanda Mujica, Sound Design by J Hagenbuckle

Cast in order of appearance:

Eliades, Diego Arciniegas

Santiago, Dick Santos

Cheché, Robert Saoud

Marela, Angela Sperazza

Conchita, Melinda Lopez

Ofelia, Bobbie Steinbach

Juan Julian, Liam Torres

Palomo, Diego Arciniegas

Performances: Now through March 26

Box Office: 617-933-8600 or www.bostontheatrescene.com

It's hard to believe that Nilo Cruz's "Anna in the Tropics" won the Pulitzer Prize for drama in 2003. Currently being presented by Boston's SpeakEasy Stage Company, this stilted and leaden homage to the traditions of Cuban cigar manufacturing falls far short of the searing clash of cultures and socio-economic viewpoints that it purports to be.

The production starts out with promise, juxtaposing scenes of men betting on a cockfight with those of their women anxiously awaiting the arrival of a "lectore," a professional orator they have hired to read novels to them while they labor in the cigar factory. This pointed contrast between brash husbands and romance-minded wives sets the stage for what could be a potent collision between convention and revolution, control and freedom. Instead, the play and performances quickly descend into bland speech making, with Machado's predictable parallels between the family of factory workers and the characters in "Anna Karenina" – the book the lectore has chosen to read – seeming forced and repetitious.

There are periodic glimmers of life that raise hope for SpeakEasy's "Anna in the Tropics." The sprightly Angela Sperazza as Marela brings an enthusiastic innocence to her incurably romantic factory owner's daughter. Dick Santos as Santiago and Bobbie Steinbach as Ofelia have an amusing scene in which they use their daughter Marela as a go-between during an argument. Liam Torres as the lectore Juan Julian exudes a sensual charm that arouses the women and threatens the men. Unfortunately, none of the hints of passion buried beneath the surface ever emerge full-blown. Even what should be a torrid love scene is restrained and perfunctory. It seems as if director Daniel Jáquez has instructed his cast to hold back – to perform the play with a moody Russian stoicism instead of a pulsating Latin heat.

The biggest hurdle for the cast to overcome is Machado's self-conscious, pseudo-poetic language. Instead of letting the dialog spring naturally from his characters, the playwright superimposes his rhetoric upon them. As a result, the actors seem to be functioning as mouthpieces for the author and not as vibrant Cuban Americans caught up in a changing world where mechanization, laborers' unions, and emerging equality between the sexes jeopardize their age-old customs and very livelihood.

By the time all of the characters in "Anna in the Tropics" light the ceremonial cigar in celebration of the factory's new product, the audience no longer cares what happens. Plot turns that are meant to be dramatic and emotionally jarring are predictable and anti-climactic. In fact, some scenes – like the accusatory encounter between spouses Conchita and Palomo and the inebriated dance sequence that is supposed to show how uninhibited Latins are compared to Americans – seem downright silly.

Usually one can be pretty sure that where there's smoke, there's fire. Sadly, in this SpeakEasy production of "Anna in the Tropics," the flame gets extinguished long before anything has a chance to burn.

 

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