Theatre Review
These are fertile days for the Center Theatre Group, with crowds emerging from each of its three theatres bubbling over with the singular experience of sharing live theatre. From John Leguizamo taking no prisoners at the Ahmanson in Latin History For Morons, to American theatre royalty Bill Irwin making sense of the mystifying work of Samuel Becket in On Becket at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, to the brand-spanking newly remodeled Music Center Plaza and restaurants. It is a happy time for Academy Award-winning filmmaker Ethan Coen to witness the world premiere of his new play, A Play Is A Poem, at the Mark Taper Forum, which sits nicely in that collective of theater joy.
If the basic definition of a poem is “a sequence of stanzas—verses of metered feet,” then each of Coen’s five small stories—like stanzas strung together one after another—are indeed, his poem. Each compact verse is a tip of Coen’s hat to iconic motifs of film, theatre, and television, beginning with his own inimitable style (created with his brother) in crazy good films like Fargo, Raising Arizona, and No Country for Old Men. The result of a long artistic collaboration with Director Neil Pepe, Coen says of their process, “The aim is to get to that point where it’s become a great big joyride for the actors and audience.” Mission accomplished. With characters who echo everyone from private dick Sam Spade to Honeymooner Ralph Kramden, Coen harkens to distinctly Americana fare.
At the center of the five stories, “At the Gazebo” is the longest and perhaps the most intriguing. Tennessee Williams’ Summer in Smoke immediately comes to mind as dashing Carter (winning Sam Vartholomeos) wrestles with impulses of love and questions of existential truth with buttoned-up Dorothy (spot-on Micaela Diamond.) Both Vartholomeos and Diamond step into the period with ease and authenticity. It is a stark contrast from the belly-laugh-out-loud comedy of the opening piece, “The Redeemers.” Both with and apart from his famous brother Joel, Coen has a way of putting highly literate dialogue into the mouths of sometimes not so literate characters. Even the doofiest of characters, like Cal (comedic wizard Max Casella), articulate gems of wisdom. Between the cast and Coen’s words, director Pepe had an embarrassment of riches to bring this quirky work to life.
What an ensemble; replete with veterans of screen (large and small) like Peter Jacobson (House, Waiting for Lefty) whose effortless work is a pleasure to behold, as well as delightful newcomers a heartbeat out of school like Diamond and Vartholomeos. Rounding out the cast are the always spot-on Jason Kravitz; excellent Mark Taper debuting actor Ro Bodie; Saul (we could write sonnets for) Rubinek; as close to perfection as they come Miriam Silverman; and funny to the point of mastery, Joey Slotnick and CJ Wilson.
The absolute jewel of the evening is songstress Nellie McKay who sings her original songs seated at the piano, strolling through the isles playing a ukulele, all with an air of, I know that you know that I am cheeky and fabulous. At first glance you might think she is a filler for the scene changes, but on closer consideration, the scene changes are minimal enough to be done in a fraction of the time, thereby swapping the equation. The scene changes are designed to accommodate her.
A rare night of innovation and artistry awaits you at the Mark Taper Forum. A Play is A Poem runs through October 13, 2019.
If you are so inclined, the Center Theatre Group has some sweet season ticket deals. The line-up is promising.
Photo cred: https://www.centertheatregroup.org/tickets/mark-taper-forum/2019/a-play-is-a-poem