Reviewed by Judy Richter
As the lights go down, an old
newsreel of Adolph Hitler and his Nazi troops entering Paris is shown on a
stage curtain. As the curtain rises, the newsreel continues, projecting onto
the back wall of an underground vault as a man opens a door and descends a long
staircase (set by Erik Flatmo with lighting by Japhy Weideman). Thus begins San Jose
Repertory Theatre's
production of Jeffrey Hatcher's "A Picasso," an intermissionless drama pitting art
against oppression in Paris in late October 1941. The man is artist Pablo
Picasso (James Carpenter). He is soon joined by a woman, Miss Fischer (Carrie Paff), from the Nazi ministry of
culture. She has been ordered to get Picasso to check three portraits that were
confiscated from people, presumably Jews, who fled Paris ahead of the Germans.
She asks him to verify whether they're really his or if they're copies. If any
are authentic, they are to go into an exhibition of "degenerate" art
that will then be burned.
What
follows is a verbal cat-and-mouse game between the temperamental Picasso and
the determined Miss Fischer. It also turns into something of a sexually
provocative dance between them as Picasso insinuates himself closer to her.
While there is much discussion about the background of the three portraits,
Miss Fischer begins to reveal some vulnerability. The Nazi regime has retained
her because of she is an expert on 20th century art in general and Picasso in
particular. She says that if she doesn't do as she's told, her parents could be
endangered.
Costumes
by Meg Neville contrast
the two personalities with Picasso in somewhat casual beige, complete with
beret, and Miss Fischer in a more severe black dress. The sound is by Jeff
Mockus. Despite
the play's tendency toward talkiness, Jonathan Moscone's keen direction and the two
actors' outstanding performances maintain the suspense and tension,
occasionally leavened by witty one-liners, usually from Picasso. The result is
a thought-provoking look at the importance of art and the artist in society.
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