|
|
Feb. 23, 2007
Old tensions that die hard
Brebner play exposes the painful history of competitive friends.
BAILA LAZARUS
Morwyn Brebner's The Optimists is one of those plays for
everybody – a cast of interesting, if annoying, characters;
enough humor to keep you laughing all the way through; and enough
of a serious side to provoke a thought or two. But no more than
a thought; opening night was, after all, on Valentine's Day.
If you're familiar with Brebner's work (she wrote the award-winning
Little Mercy's First Murder, which was staged in Vancouver
at the Van East Cultural Centre in 2005), you know she has a knack
for creating characters who have wonderful flaws. These people aren't
just rough around the edges, they are filled with potholes and fissures
big enough to drive a Hummer through. But we like them because they
always give the audience a sense that they're really trying hard
– trying hard to quit bad habits, trying hard to make a relationship
work, trying hard to get over someone – so they end up being
quite human.
In Brebner's latest work, we watch what transpires in a Las Vegas
hotel room where Chick (John Murphy) and Teenie (Anastasia Phillips)
are celebrating, the night before their wedding, with Chick's best
friend Doug (Scott Bellis). Doug's wife, Margie (Jillian Fargey),
joins the threesome late in the first act.
As expected, what starts off as a lighthearted evening, with a few
drinks and laughs, gets ugly pretty quickly, as memories surface
and jealousies, misunderstandings, lies and insecurities start dancing
from one person to the next.
Teenie is a fairly simple-minded character who grew up in foster
homes and is trying to shed her dumb-blonde image; made difficult
by the fact that her name is Teenie and she's not too bright. After
Chick proposed to her (by phone), a voice said to her, "Teenie,
make yourself a cross" (even though she's not religious). So
she makes a foot-high, multicolored cardboard cross that she wears
around her neck at work one day – and can't understand why
people would be offended.
Chick, who's already been married three times, seems to like the
fact that Teenie seems a bit lost, like him, and though she needs
taking care of, is ready to take care of him, as well. He was addicted
to drinking, cigarettes and phone sex lines when Teenie found him.
Now, he's on a program: He doesn't "drink" but he will
have "a drink." And he only bets on a team he knows will
lose. "That way, it's not really gambling," he says.
As for Doug, he makes fun of his friend's choice of fiancée,
but can barely hide the fact that his own marriage is a joke. He's
a hen-pecked husband and his sex life is a "three-drink minimum":
one drink to start to relax; at two drinks, she's looking good;
three drinks is perfect, because she starts to look like a stranger.
The history between Doug and Chick is rocky, too, because Doug became
a highly regarded oncologist and thinks Chick has wasted his life
becoming a car salesman when he could've graduated university. Doug's
also bitter because his mother used to think so highly of Chick.
To show his resentment, Doug needles Chick more about his choice
of bride, referring to Teenie as "Cindy Candy Mindy Mandy."
Chick, on the other hand, thinks Doug's mother set too many limits
on Doug as a child, so he's grown up unable to take risks. He thinks
Doug should just have an affair if his sex life is so bad. It's
as though they grew up as brothers. Doug turned out to be the good
son; Chick was the more exciting black sheep.
When Margie arrives, catty insults really start flying, followed
by hilarious posturing, which is followed by flirtatious stroking.
Margie seems to have a thing for Chick and doesn't care about showing
it in front of Teenie or Doug. In fact, she seems to enjoy testing
Teenie. Chick is too drunk to do anything but comply. This is where
the play really gets fun. The one-liners and reactions are side-splitting,
and the actors, especially Bellis, put their best drunk feet forward.
But the meltdown is just the storm before the calm and, in the morning
light, "Everything is different," says Margie.
Indeed, it's not the morning light that changes things, but the
fact that the foursome actually got to reveal all their hidden secrets
and fears. They get what many people really need: the chance to
start again with a clean slate. And after all, what better gift
for Valentine's Day?
The Optimists is directed by Rachel Ditor, and runs at the
Arts Club Granville Island Stage until March 3. For tickets, call
Ticketmaster, 604-280-3311, or the Arts Club Theatre box office,
604-687-1644, or visit www.artsclub.com/boxoffice.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and
illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
^TOP
|
|
