BWW Reviews: Gripping Production of OTHER DESERT CITIES Closes Mad Horse Season

South Portland's Mad Horse Theatre Company closes its 2014-2015 season with a gripping rendition of Jon Robin Baitz's 2011 drama, Other Desert Cities. The play explores the painful bonds and conflicts in a family whose relationships have are strained by differences in political thinking, by the loss of their oldest son, and by their daughter's desire to recount the truth as she sees it. The drama, set largely in 2004 in the bellicose post 9/11 America of George W. Bush, is about the fine line between acting and reality, the dark depths of deception, and the devastating, yet healing consequences of discovering the truth.

Baitz vividly brings to life the Wyeth family, now living among the country club set of upscale, white conservative Palm Springs, having buried, they believe the past, only to find their recently recovered depressive daughter intends to publish her account of her brother's suicide. In the course of a Christmas reunion, old wounds are mercilessly opened, and truth - the unexpected truth - revealed. Baitz has a sensitive ear for dialogue and character and the ability to make the acrid exchanges bristle with both venom and humor.

Directed by Nick Schroeder, the production succeeds in drawing five excellent portraits of the Wyeth parents and children, as well as Polly Wyeth's manic sister. Schroeder elicits from his actors wonderfully naturalistic performances that throb with emotion. If there is a quibble with his staging, it is that the rather large and lovely set by Steve Tesh poses some challenges for blocking in this fifty-seat semi-arena configuration, and that one finds oneself looking for long stretches at the backs of the same actors. (Artificial as it may seem, one might find some more motivations to move them more often.) Still, he keeps the pace taut and lets the tension build to make for a cathartic conclusion.

Janice Gardner gives an emotionally scathing and truthful performance as Brooke Wyeth, torn between her compulsion to publish her book and her longing for her parents' blessing. Brent Askari paints a subtle portrait of her brother Trip, helplessly caught in the midst of the conflict and ill equipped to do battle. Christopher Horton brings dignity and stature to retired Ambassador Wyeth, who ultimately can no longer conceal the truth from his daughter. Grace Bauer wears the perfect mask as his wife Polly, creating a world that is bearable for herself and, she believes, her family - one she tries fiercely to defend. In this stultifying cocoon of artifice Maureen Butler, as Polly's black sheep sister Silda, introduces a welcome whiff of craziness, making the character both fragile and loveable.

Steve Tesh's set, despite the challenges it poses, effectively creates the fashionable southwest decor of this expensive home, complemented by Corey Anderson's lighting, Anna Halloran's credible costumes, and Nick Schoeder's period sound design.

This production of Other Desert Cities brings Mad Horse Theatre Company's main stage season to a powerful conclusion. Once again the company is be applauded for the diversity of its repertoire - which this season included one classic, one world premiere, and two challenging contemporary plays - as well as for the impeccable excellence of their acting and production values.

Photos Courtesy Mad Horse Theatre

Other Desert Cities runs from April 30 - May 17, 2015 at 24 Mosher St., South Portland, ME www.madhorsetheatre.com 207-747-4148.

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