Reviewed by Michael J. Opperman
Martin's McDonagh's The
Pillowman is a
blend of anti-totalitarian agitprop, surreal Kafkaesque narrative, and
ripped-from-the-headlines crime story. Thematically and structurally, the play
is a challenge to stage. Wendy Knox and Frank Theater's production at the Guthrie Theater is both compelling and uneven.
Set
in some vaguely Cold War Eastern Bloc state, the play opens on an interrogation
room and three men. With forward leaning doorways and an industrial
superstructure, the room is claustrophobic. The two interrogators, in their
riveting good cop/bad cop routine, only accentuate the threat. Ariel (Chris
Carlson) is
rangy and manic, given to explosions of anger and violence. Tupolski (Luverne
Seifert) is
steady, playing the cool foil with menace. The doors at each side of the stage
only disturb the mid-century totalitarian milieu, their vertical slides and
sound effects suggesting Plan 9 from Outer Space more than The Lives of Others.
The
suspect is nervous Katurian (Jim Lichtseidl), a writer of disturbing stories
that feature child torture and murder. He doesn't know why he has been taken in
custody. Ariel and Tupolski question Katurian, using his stories as fodder for
their interrogation. They reveal that they have also arrested Katurian's
developmentally challenged brother, Michal, using him as leverage to get
Katurian to talk. About what Katurian is at a loss.
The
first act moves with a sure restraint punctuated only intermittently with
disruptive attempts at comedy. Like engaging film noir, the dialogue is tight
and tense. Seifert is pitch perfect as Tupolski. The second act is less
coherent.
The
pantomime of Katurian's stories on the upper stage behind transparent panels is
effective. The stories themselves, particularly that which chronicles his
parents' treatment of Michal, is improbable and a strain on a play that relies
on the credibility of a totalitarian regime and censorship. Grant Richey, a talented actor, is either
miscast or misdirected as Michal. His Michal undercuts the tension of the play.
His Michal seems alternatively dangerous and capable, and innocent and
affected. The landscape of the character is inconsistent and confusing.
The
production is nevertheless thought provoking. From censorship to torture, the
position of art to the sanctity of childhood, The Pillowman provides plenty of food for
thought and argument.