DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS

Eugene O'Neill, perhaps the first great American dramatist, has been the focus of a series of presentations at the outstanding Goodman Theatre this winter. Several of his powerful scripts have been staged by various theatre groups, with the Goodman itself mounting DESIRE, the O'Neill attempt to Americanize Greek tragedy. Starring Brian Dennehy and now featuring Amy J. Carle, who had understudied Carla Gugino in the role of Abbie, the work is a fitting and appropriate work for a changeable Chicago winter.

Director Robert Falls apparently went back to the drawing board for this successful work, tossing out O'Neill's extensive stage directions and reinterpreting the setting and staging. Perhaps the most striking result was the decision to eliminate any elms, or any trees or anything else soft or gentle from the set. Instead, the work morphs into DESIRE AMONG THE ROCKS, with a mountain of giant boulders at least fifteen feet high dwarfing the characters and allowing them no place of refuge. Along with the rock mountain, other boulders hang from ropes, looming over the characters at every moment. For that matter, the Putnam house hangs from the rafters above the heads of these characters for many scenes, with the visual effect that everything in their world is ready to crush them all at a moment's notice.

Most of O'Neill's powerful works investigate the depths of pain and suffering that people inflict upon one another, and this script is no different. It allows fine actors the opportunity to live in the skins of these people, bellowing and crying, threatening and lying, living their meagre lives to get whatever tragic result that might be in store. Brian Dennehy, as expected, is a true stage star in the role of Efrem, doomed to self-inflicted loneliness among the rocks. Carle, a pleasant surprise in the role of Abbie, emits desperation in her every move to avoid that same loneliness. It is difficult to see how the acclaimed Gugino, away on a film promotion tour, could have done any better.

The work is one hundred minutes of pain, with much of the catharsis of the Greek tragedy for those of us who return to homes that are indeed and in fact places of refuge.

JERSEY BOYS

Taking a moment away from Fermilab, where we will return tomorrow, I must catch up a bit on something I missed. For Valentine's Day, we went to see JERSEY BOYS, the energetic musical that narrates the tale of Frankie Valli and Bob Gaudio and the music of The Four Seasons.

Side note: I collect programs of plays I have seen and have more than 400 of them. For more than 25 years, I have kept a list of plays seen each year and have my own awards for best play, best actor and best actress. I taught literature and creative writing for nearly four decades and taught drama for ten years. End of side note.

There is a good possibility that JERSEY BOYS will win best play for the third consecutive year. The first, 2007, was the Broadway version with John Lloyd Young; the others were in Chicago with outstanding casts. This title ranks with FIDDLER ON THE ROOF as best musical ever and ranks up there with titles such as DEATH OF A SALESMAN (which I saw starring Dustin Hoffman) for best play of any kind. The music, the story, the acting: this work has it all.

We are currently beginning our plan for another visit, perhaps in Chicago in 2010, perhaps in Las Vegas if we head out that way. Oh What a Night!

DOUBT: A Parable

Looks like I will be going to see the recent Meryl Streep movie this week. The Steel Beam Theatre in downtown St. Charles Illinois is staging an outstanding 100-minute live performance of the original John Peter Shanley script, a live dramatic play. Titled as above, Doubt: A Parable is a probing look at doubt and certainty and at the difficult choices we make as we live out our lives. Certainly there are thousands of people who have seen Ms. Streep, the finest actress of our time. But once I knew I would be attending this version, I decided not to see the film. Now, having enjoyed the outstanding work of this quartet of actors, I feel compelled to see the film as directed by Shanley himself.

Director Terence Domschke lead Dennis Edwards as Father Flynn and Donna Steele as Sister Aloysius in a riveting clash of opponents. The questions arise from the certainty that the nun, the 1964 school principal, feels compels her to "bring down" the priest she mistrusts. Both priest and nun have issues of their own involved. We all wonder how to gain the certainty that will bring down evil and promote good, and how we can act that way without causing evil in the process. Is anyone wise enough to follow through? Is anyone perfect enough to withstand a malevolent scrutiny designed to destroy? Loads of things to ponder.

In a discussion period following the play, I commented that over 50 years ago I and all my classmates watched Davy Crockett, King of the Wild Frontier and learned his motto: Be sure you are right, then go ahead. In just a few short years, I realized that if we waited to "be sure," we might never get anything done. In a few more years, I learned the disturbing truth about Davy Crockett, who was no hero in many ways. Perhaps he has been better characterized as a drunk.

No pictures to add tonight, and no answers to the tough questions posed by the fine script and powerful actors. Just the questions.