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March 24, 2006
Theatre in the very raw
Works and acting of Studio 58 students vary in quality.
BAILA LAZARUS
The idea is kind of fun: an out-of-work actor, Arthur, desperate
for an opportunity to be on stage, agrees to participate in reality
theatre. One wall of his house is knocked down so audience seating
can be put in and life in the house can be viewed 24/7 for the cost
of a ticket. Unfortunately, Mr. Out-of-Work-Actor neglected to ask
his type-A personality wife, Maggie, if she'd mind being in a fishbowl
for all to see.
After getting over the initial shock and anger, and after being
buttered up by the show's pompous director, not only does she agree
to have her life turned into performance art, she negotiates the
fee herself and quickly assumes the role of starlet.
That, in a nutshell, is the premise of Versus Reality by
Kyle Jespersen, part of 4play: New Work by Excited Writers, a quartet
of plays written by Studio 58 participants, currently being shown
at Langara College. The quartet is divided in two, with Program
A (Versus Reality and What We Want) playing on alternating
nights with Program B (Outside the Gallery and Red Bill).
While the premise of Versus Reality is simple, its performance
is anything but. First, the real audience has to somehow be let
in on the fact that they are going to be part of the play, like
secondary performers. Unfortunately, it was awhile into the play
before it became apparent what was going on. Confusing matters,
the play uses canned laughter at times to indicate that Maggie is
getting some good reaction to her non-acting. When the laughter
is turned on, Arthur looks around the house as if he's wondering
where it's is coming from. It shouldn't be that hard to find if
it's supposed to be coming from a group of people sitting in bleachers
where one wall of his house used to be.
In addition, several times the on-stage actors walk into the audience
and start talking to people in their seats. This has the uncomfortable
feeling one gets during theatre improv; you don't know if you should
play along seriously or try to input humor by making a joke of the
situation. And as people pause and stutter to find answers, the
play seems to stall.
On top of that quirkiness, there's a problem with a number of the
characters. Everyone seems to be in a "starring" role
– Arthur, his wife, the director, the stage manager and even
the next door neighbor (who ends up having the funniest part in
the play). With so many stars, the focus of the play gets thrown
all over the place; there's no real central character to which the
play can attach itself.
And when Art and Maggie start arguing about their roles in the play,
stage director Wilma throws herself at Art, so Maggie decides to
throw herself at the next door neighbor. Pretty soon they're all
rolling around on the floor. Add to that a neighbor vacuuming the
living room with a sponsor's product, an irate audience member who
insists on delivering esoteric speeches about life and a theatre
reviewer who insists on having a part as a director and you end
up with a real hodge-podge of plots.
Although the play does not garner great reviews, a few key performances
do stand out of the mix. Emmelia Gordon, who plays Maggie, Raphael
Kepinski as neighbor Garry and Jewish community member Lila Klaiman,
who plays the stage director, all turn in noteworthy appearances.
Far more successful was the second play of the night, What We
Want. Taking place at a bus stop, it brings together four students
– a science major, an engineer and two in art school. As they
wait for the bus, they get into heated discussions about the value
of each discipline.
Though the characters are clichéd – the tough, loud
engineer; a meek Asian science student; one artist in bohemian dress
with flirty demeanor and the second artist dressed in pretentious,
trendy black – and the discussions follow the expected lines
of reasoning, the play is still entertaining. The acting is good
and there are enough unexpected turns to keep the audience interested
to the end.
4Play is comprised of student-written works and performed by the
students in the Studio 58 theatre course. Programs A and B alternate
Wednesday through Sunday until April 2. Tickets for each pair of
plays are $9. Call Festival box office at 604-257-0366 or visit
www.festivalboxoffice.com
for information.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and
illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
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