Review: THE NORMAL HEART at Vintage Theatre

"The Normal Heart" by Larry Kramer is not a light-hearted piece of theatre. It is a heavy drama about the terrifying "new cancer" that ravaged the gay community in the early 1980s. It is dark and frustrating, and beautiful, and the script demands a lot of a cast. It seems that Vintage Theatre Company was up to that challenge and more.

The show opens with a wrenching scene in a doctor's office as one of the very first known cases of AIDS was encountered in New York City. Dr. Emma Brookner (Emma Messenger) does her best to help her gay patients combat this scary new monster of a disease, but realizes that she needs help to expose the epidemic to the media. She contacts Ned Weeks (Charlie Wingerter), who is known for his loud, opinionated journalism style, to bring the disease to the forefront of the media. Over the course of the next few years, the government continues to deny the existence of a new epidemic, and quells the attempts of Ned's organization to warn the gay community of the impending doom of the disease. It isn't until several years later, and a catastrophic number of casualties documented, that the government finally relents and acknowledges the destruction caused by the disease.

The show is not uplifting, but it is quite a challenge for the actors, who have to push through some very intense scenes. The cast of this production shines, and brings real depth and sympathy to every character. Emma Messenger masterfully portrays Dr. Emma Brookner, and delivers a flawless monologue in the second act when confronting the medical boards about funding for her disease research. Christian Munck plays Bruce Niles, the leader of the organization fighting for government sympathy, and he brought tears to my eyes as he related the horrific treatment of his deceased lover. Charlie Wingerter plays the infuriated Ned Weeks with gusto. Craig Bond deftly portrays Felix Turner, who is currently suffering the effects of the new disease. Todd Black gives heartfelt reality to Mickey Marcus, another of the organization's founders. The ensemble as a whole was a powerhouse, and gave vibrant life to a show that focuses on so much death.

The show is performed in the smaller of Vintage's two spaces, and the set was nonexistent. Lighting was apt for the piece, but the use of projection work at the center of the stage was largely distracting and unneeded in the piece. Paul Jaquith directed the show and chose to leave all of the actors on the stage, seated at the sidelines when not performing in a scene. The choice was intriguing, but puzzling, as half of the actors seemed engaged in the scenes (Matt Cantwell broke my heart as he watched difficult scenes and wept), and others acted indifferently as statues. At any rate, the production was engaging, and Jaquith certainly led the cast through some extremely difficult work.

Vintage Theatre Productions should definitely be commended for this dark piece of historical reality. The show was challenging to the cast and to the audience, and reminiscent of their production of "Angels in America" from several seasons ago. It is a great risk to bring challenging pieces of theatre to audiences who often expect escapist musicals and light farces. Well done, Vintage, and well done, cast of "The Normal Heart"

"The Normal Heart" plays the Vintage Theatre January 15-February 21. Tickets and information can be found at www.vintagetheatre.org or by calling 303.856.7830.

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