BWW Reviews: Studio Theatre's Intense BELLEVILLE Features Strong Performances

There's no shortage of drama with Studio Theatre's season opener Belleville. Amy Herzog's play is one couple's story of simmering angst and duplicity set in a fashionable suburb in "The City of Love." Belleville may be a challenging play to sit through, but that doesn't stop Studio Theatre from staging an exceptionally solid production.

In Belleville, Herzog proves herself to be a talented playwright capable of exploring the very depths of emotional despair. Starting with the opening scenes, she adeptly layers the play with a foundation of growing anxiety and deceit. With each new revelation, the answers provided by Herzog only seem to continue probing the seemingly ideal marriage of Abby (Gillian Williams) and Zack (Jacob H. Knoll). The play starts with an embarrassing moment for Zack, followed by a distressing visit from their landlord Alioune (Maduka Steady). From there Herzog starts to unwind the secrecy which has discreetly filled Abby and Zack's relationship.

Belleville is a powerful piece with characters that are terrifyingly real and filled with a range of tortured emotions. What's frustrating about the play is that Herzog declines to answer one final question - why did we go on this journey with Abby and Zack? What, if anything, is the ultimate lesson to be taken from their experience?

Together, Williams and Knoll have a powerful connection onstage and do a tremendous job bringing alive Abby and Zack's complicated relationship. Their performances are well-developed and incredibly raw. After watching Belleville, you're left to ask, "How do they have the stamina to do that eight times a week?"

Knoll in particular gives a nuanced performance as Zack, beginning with a perfectly understated and stable portrayal. He is, after all, a medical doctor researching childhood AIDS, the marriage's breadwinner and emotional pillar to Abby - who just went off her anti-depressant medication. When Zack's near-perfect facade is stripped away, Knoll's gripping performance becomes more rushed and intense as a man desperately searching for anything resembling stability.

In contrast, Williams' Abby may not be searching for stability as much as she is for peace-of-mind. For Abby, that usually arrives in the form of a stateside phone call from her father. We can see the psychological relief in Williams' face every time the ringtone fills the set. One early and intriguing moment comes when Abby tells Zack that she's, "So tired of the pressure to be happy." We see that in Williams, who puts on full display Abby's struggles with a constant feeling of sorrow and regret. These seem to lie just underneath her surface. There's always a hesitancy with Williams, as if Abby is afraid that some moment might lead to happiness.

Herzog has given us a relationship counterbalance with the brief appearances of Alioune and his wife Amina (Joy Jones). Steady slyly reveals hints of Zack in Alioune's personality and how he's able to keep those traits under control. Jones' Amina is filled with silent strength, a striking contrast to Williams unstable Abby.

David Muse's precise direction skillfully navigates some of Belleville's most intense moments. He's able to make Debra Booth's apartment set feel increasingly confined with every revelatory moment and step taken by Knoll and Williams. The volatility of the play's climatic scenes is brought about by Muse who makes us feel as if we've been in a pressure cooker with the couple.

Several design elements add to Belleville's tense atmosphere starting with Booth's bohemian apartment setting. A feeling of anxiety can be felt with the creaky wooden doors and stained mirrors on the entryway closet. Adding to the apartment's uneasy feeling is the presence of a single bare light fixture in the ceiling lacking a light bulb and shade. It's an oddity and the whole set seems to confirm that something just isn't right. Peter West's lighting design creates the feeling of winter in Paris with a cold light that reaches throughout the set. It reminds us of the ongoing deceptions in the apartment.

Despite a well-crafted and well-acted production by Studio Theatre, Belleville remains a frustrating work. We don't doubt the authenticity of either of Herzog's characters, nor question how such events could forever alter their life together. We just begin to question the rationale for why we're being brought in to watch.

Runtime: One hour and 45 minutes with no intermission

Warning: Belleville features brief nudity and graphic situations

Studio Theatre's Belleville runs thru October 12th at Studio Theatre 1501 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20005. For tickets please call (202) 332-3300 or click here.

Photo: Jacob H. Knoll (Zack) and Gillian Williams (Abby) in Belleville. Credit: Igor Dmitry.

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