BWW Reviews: Fascinating ONE WHITE CROW Premieres at Edgemar
By: Don Grigware Apr. 30, 2013
One White Crow*/by Dale Griffiths Stamos/directed by Deborah LaVine/Edgemar Center for the Arts, Santa Monica/through June 23
Playwright Dale Griffiths Stamos is unafraid to delve into the human psyche to search for answers that will perhaps never be found; it makes for a brave new work One White Crow whose deeply human characters with divergent opinions on faith vs. skepticism make us prick up our ears and really listen. Now onstage at the Edgemar Center for the Arts, One White Crow, labeled a work in progress, is intelligent, stimulating theatre with superb direction form Deborah LaVine and a trio of fine actors.
The analysis of a major issue is most productive when the varying components representing both sides are on hand. In this case there's a popular TV medium Judith Knight (Michelle Danner) who claims to have made contact with the deceased father of journalist Teresa O'Neill (Jane Hajduk), a disbeliever who is aided by friend, professional skeptic Alex Rimbaud (Rob Estes). So, Knight must attempt the impossible, namely to win over O'Neill. She insists that the reluctant O'Neill interview her for a reputable magazine. Both O'Neill and Rimbaud, who also has a TV program diametrically opposed to Knight's, are out to prove Knight a fraud, and for that reason and that alone, O'Neill agrees to do the interview. O'Neill's father was a major scientist, and therefore would be the last person who would have come to Knight for help, even after death. Stamos explores the issues with such humanity that we are allowed to see beyond the superficial, and as if under a microscope inspect Knight, O'Neill and Rimbaud up close and personal, warts and all. O'Neill is the most complicated of all, as she has an allegiance to Rimbaud. He worked closely with her father, and she was and still is sexually attracted to him; he definitely feels an afinity toward her. In the beginning, Knight does not stand a chance of bringing O'Neill over to her side, and when it eventually does look somewhat good, there's Rimbaud lurking and pulling O'Neill back to reality. There's also a problem with Rimbaud whose mother, like O'Neill's father, died of cancer. But his mother was a new ager, trying to accept holistic treatments and giving herself over to more spiritual guidance. Her loss has made Rimbaud even tougher and unbending in his pragmatic beliefs. Such are the conflicting elements of the piece.
The acting is first rate. Judith Knight is a dream role for Danner; it's an ideal fit. As an acting teacher and coach, she is called upon to be patient and understanding, and all of this experience lends credibility and great subtlety to her performance. Hajduk is a marvel at conveying complexity. O'Neill is driven and carries a secret inside that is causing her great consternation and worry. When Knight discovers it, it becomes a breakthrough for her character's possible positive transformation. Hajduk carries through divinely. Estes is such a terrific actor/reactor that he makes Rimbaud totally his own. He has great warmth which comes through beautifully in his scenes of affection with Hadjuk. Deborah LaVine is a goddess director who keeps the pacing just right and allows her actors tremendous freedom throughout. The main thing I like about this entire presentation is its intimacy. With these actors onstage, every moment is intensely real, brutally honest...a joy to watch.
There is not much humor in the script; maybe the addition of some would be a good thing. At times I felt like I was watching an intense TV drama that needed some form of levity to brighten the horizon every now and then. But, overall, genuine and absorbing theatre!
*One interesting and intelligent note about the title. One White Crow is a real phrase that was coined by 19th century psychologist William James of his association with medium Leonora Piper, who managed to convert him from an extreme pragmatist to a believer in psychic phenomena. Amidst all black crows, the original thinker exclaimed, there is one white one that stands apart, that can make a difference. In Stamos' play Knight serves as a white crow for O'Neill and O'Neill a possible one for Rimbaud.
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