Reviewed
by Will Stackman
As
one of the signature pieces of post-WWII European drama, Jean-Paul Sartre's "No Exit" is not often produced in
this country, even though the text of "Huis Clos" remains high on the
reading lists for studies in both Modern Drama and 20th Century Philosophy.
Perhaps this short Absurdist drama's grim view of reality has been incorporated
so fully into modern playwrighting that the conflict between its three main
characters seems old news. This current revival at the ART was directed by Jerry
Mouawad, a
Lecoq-trained physical theatre devotee and Co-Artistic Director of Seattle's
Imago Theatre, where this version was first staged. He's placed the action,
which occurs in an small room in Hell, on a square stage floating off the floor
on a central pivot--with appropriate mechanics to keep its shifts from becoming
too violent. As the cast -- a murdered leftist journalist; a lesbian whose
lover has gassed herself; and an oversexed blonde who murdered her child,
causing its father to shoot himself -- proceeds from scene to scene through
Mouawad's strict choreography for the play, the floor tilts under them. One
corner is pointed towards the audience, the only door is on the stage left rear
edge. The metaphor is obvious, of course, but from time to time quite
effective.
The
staging however never seems necessary, due mostly to the impressive cast of ART
veterans performing the show. With some 250 productions for the company among
them, Will LeBow (Garcin),
Paula Plum (Inez),
Karen MacDonald
(Estelle), and Remo Airaldi (The Valet) have each weathered much more extreme staging
and costumery. This ensemble could do the play quite successfully on a plain
stage with general lighting and no directorial tricks. In fact, since they've
had to concentrate on the intricate blocking to deal with the constantly
shifting floor, some line readings seem insufficiently explored, especially in
LeBow's later scenes. It may be that his distinctive voice in this case, always
clearly understood and effective, overrides possible subtle interpretations. It
would be interesting to see what this cast might discover as the play runs.
Their
characterizations are unique and effective, however. Mouawad has hewed to
Sartre's original text--at least as embodied in the familiar Stuart Gilbert translation. Inez's declared
lesbian lifestyle is almost matter of course on today's stage, but Plum finds
ways to create a fully rounded personality in a role which can easily become
stereotyped. MacDonald creates an Estelle with emotional depth behind the
shallow bimbo which she can play so easily. LeBow hints at his character's
ultimate lack of moral fiber behind Garcin's assurance and bluster. Even
Airaldi, playing the Valet as a sort of devilish bellhop, finds another
interesting clown to portray. The women especially are helped by Rafael Jaen's careful late '40's couture,
which has Inez in a gray wool dress with pink-accented kick pleats and Estelle
in a rumpled blue evening gown with visible lingerie. He even manages to
suggest the vaguely South American origins of these three. Airaldi, with his
rotund pyhsique, is done up in a parody of the familiar Phillip-Morris mascot,
with a slight Lewis Carroll air.
Imago's
first joint venture with the ART was last summer's successful presentation of
their family variety show "Frogz" in the new Zero Arrow St. facility.
Perhaps Mouawad and his partner, Carol Triffle, will be able to stage an
original piece for the ART in the future, employing the talents of the MXART
graduate students. Of all the guest directors who've been at the Loeb in recent
years, he and Imago may have the most real theatrical insight to contribute.
His constructivist approach to the setting for this play would probably be more
effective with slightly less seasoned actors who were able to explore the
ramifications of such difficult staging over a longer period of time, both in
rehearsal and performance. Physical theatre is obviously a major influence upon
contemporary staging, and providing its techniques can be used without
denigrating the text, may ultimately lead to an effective synthesis. In any
case, audiences here should look forward to any future efforts the Imago
Theatre may be willing to bring to the area.