Polish and Passion: Theater Far and Near

Two performances in two cities in three weeks: Caffeine Theatre doing Eliot’s The Cocktail Party and the Oklahoma City Theatre Company doing an adaptation of Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed. (see Consumption below) Fiction and non-fiction, old and new, North and South, large and small.

The brilliant folks at Caffeine get the points for sophistication, hands down. Complex quasi-religious allegory written by a poet set in Edwardian London; mysterious characters that conjure conspiracy theories of all stripes; strange interlocking personal relationships; that sort of thing. The mark of Caffeine is a production polished to the point of a mirror finish: nothing out of place, every movement deliberate and meaningful, and the well-considered property set that even distinguishes between clear gin and brown whiskey. Nothing is awkward, nothing accidental. This is a world of restraint, not expression, and the players seem to understand the need for undercurrent. The feel is of a true ensemble; unlike Dona Rosita no one really stands out here, and that’s probably for the best, as the material handled is so cerebral. About the Eliot, I’m not all that sure: so much of the dialogue borders on gratuitous speechifying, it can be hard to sit through – passion rarely speaks in thirty-line paragraphs. (Although, it’s worth noting that on the page it’s even harder to read through and remain interested.) His themes are as interesting as they are disconcerting: fate, intercession of agency beyond our control, societal roles, finding meaning in life. If it only weren’t for that final explanation by Riley. Difficult material, handled well. I can’t wait to see what’s next.

OCTC gets points for passion. If nothing else, staging an adaptation of non-fiction reportage is a move of nerve of the first rate. Nickel and Dimed is a favorite of mine, but the idea of actually STAGING a first-person account of life in the greasy underbelly of the labor force is another thing entirely. Much credit to Shelley Lytle for holding an essentially first-person show together, and thinking on her feet interacting with the (albeit tiny) audience. The performances ranged up and down the scale, with Rachel Carter’s transition from naive to cynical as the standout of the rest of the cast. The total lack of property hurt the cause a little, and there was always an element of the amateur waiting stealthily in the background, but the absolute commitment to the material on the part of everyone involved can justify more than a few sins. And what material. The adaptation (Joan Holden) manages to preserve the voice and indignation of Ehrenreich in almost the same tones as the book. Surprisingly, it’s even more powerful staged, with the diner and retail vignettes as dramatic as any fiction. The use of the screens as a constant reminder of the numbers was effective as well. As uncle Karl would remind us, no amount of meaning matters as much as being able to eat.

Totally different. Well done. Caffeine’s link is to the left, OCTC’s is: http://www.okctheatrecompany.org/