[NEohioPAL]Wonderful Beacon Journal review of COPENHAGEN at Actors' Summit

[Thackaberr at aol.com]

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By Kerry Clawson
Beacon Journal staff writer
Put two of the most brilliant scientific minds in a room together, and you're 
bound to get something volatile.
That's what happens in the play Copenhagen, showing in its Northeast Ohio 
premiere at Actors' Summit in Hudson. The three-character drama explores what 
could have been said during a mysterious, real 1941 visit between German 
physicist Werner Heisenberg (working on the Nazi atomic-bomb program) and his old 
mentor Niels Bohr, a half-Jewish scientist living in Nazi-occupied Copenhagen, 
Denmark.
Wayne Turney and Neil Thackaberry are both highly believable as student and 
mentor, both in their love-hate relationship and in the tempering, profound 
respect that these colleagues have for each other. In many ways, their lives as 
physicists resemble a good old fraternity, but when this story takes place, 
they are on opposite sides of World War II.
Both actors pointedly convey their characters' passion for their science in 
animated, often heated debates on a nearly bare, round stage that recalls the 
shape of an atom. This play, written by England's Michael Frayn, has dense 
dialogue that heavily mines the study of nuclear physics at a critical time in 
world history.
The play searches for Heisenberg's motive in his risky visit to Bohr: Is he 
searching for a piece of the good old collaborating days, simply showing off, 
or trying to manipulate a highly political, dangerous situation? Those 
questions are never clearly answered. But Lucy Bredeson-Smith, who plays Bohr's blunt 
wife, Margrethe, offers warmth, humor and wisdom as she holds mirrors up to 
each man to help them understand themselves.
Questions of motive and ethics kept me curious, but Copenhagen isn't what 
you'd call highly suspenseful.
Let's face it: This is a brainy play. Glowing reviews of the 2000 Tony 
Award-winning Broadway production described it as intellectually stimulating and 
emotionally satisfying. The play won Tonys for best play, best director and best 
featured actress.
I left the Actors' Summit production more intellectually stimulated than 
emotionally satisfied. Copenhagen is a very serious work, loaded with scientific 
jargon and discussion.
That's quite different from the celebrated math play Proof, which followed on 
the heels of Copenhagen as the 2001 Tony Award winner for best play. Although 
Proof revolves around math, it's really about family relationships. 
Copenhagen is more complex, intricate and cerebral in its treatment of science.
Thackaberry and Turney come across as alternately naive, as Thackaberry's 
Bohr assumes that all the work on nuclear fission already has been done (wrong), 
and Turney's Heisenberg assumes that scientists could never gain enough 
critical mass to create an atomic bomb (wrong again).
We learn that Heisenberg races headlong into scientific discoveries and life 
experiences without thinking, while Bohr approaches everything slowly and 
methodically.
We want to dislike Turney's Heisenberg because he's working for the Nazis. 
But Turney's urgency and uncertainty make us sympathize with him.
At the end of the first act, we think all of these scientists' thought 
processes have been explored, but the play's second act explores more of Heisenberg 
and Bohr's old academic relationship.
Playwright Frayn's writing is rich in symbolism. Frayn, best known for his 
farce Noises Off, certainly has explored every nook and cranny of these great 
minds in an attempt to explain what might have been said at this dangerous, 
historic meeting. Historians have wondered for years: Did this exchange between 
scientific geniuses have the power to alter the outcome of World War II?
Just thinking about those implications is frightening.
Copenhagen is more historically enlightening than it is entertaining. But 
sometimes, that's what theater should be about.

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<BODY style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #fffff=
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<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"><SPAN class=3Dbyline1><B><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 7pt=
; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi=
-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-langu=
age: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT color=3D#666666>By Kerry Clawson=
</FONT></SPAN></B></SPAN><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 8pt; COLOR: black; FONT-F=
AMILY: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-fa=
mily: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-=
US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><BR></SPAN><SPAN class=3Dcreditline1><B><SPAN=20=
style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 7pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Tim=
es New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: E=
N-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"><FONT color=3D#=
666666>Beacon Journal staff writer</FONT></SPAN></B></SPAN></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Put two of the most brilliant scientific minds in a ro=
om together, and you're bound to get something volatile.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></=
P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">That's what happens in the play </SPAN><st1:City><st1:=
place><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">=
Copenhagen</SPAN></I></st1:place></st1:City><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt=
; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">, </SPAN></I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE:=
 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">showing in its </SPAN><st1:place><=
SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Northeast=20=
Ohio</SPAN></st1:place><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAM=
ILY: Verdana"> premiere at Actors' </SPAN><st1:City><st1:place><SPAN style=
=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Summit</SPAN></st1:p=
lace></st1:City><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Ve=
rdana"> in </SPAN><st1:City><st1:place><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR:=
 black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Hudson</SPAN></st1:place></st1:City><SPAN styl=
e=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">. The three-charact=
er drama explores what could have been said during a mysterious, real 1941 v=
isit between German physicist Werner Heisenberg (working on the Nazi atomic-=
bomb program) and his old mentor Niels Bohr, a half-Jewish scientist living=20=
in Nazi-occupied </SPAN><st1:place><st1:City><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt;=20=
COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Copenhagen</SPAN></st1:City><SPAN style=
=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">, </SPAN><st1:countr=
y-region><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">=
Denmark</SPAN></st1:country-region></st1:place><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt=
; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Wayne Turney and Neil Thackaberry are both highly beli=
evable as student and mentor, both in their love-hate relationship and in th=
e tempering, profound respect that these colleagues have for each other. In=20=
many ways, their lives as physicists resemble a good old fraternity, but whe=
n this story takes place, they are on opposite sides of World War II.<o:p></=
o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Both actors pointedly convey their characters' passion=
 for their science in animated, often heated debates on a nearly bare, round=
 stage that recalls the shape of an atom. This play, written by </SPAN><st1:=
country-region><st1:place><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-=
FAMILY: Verdana">England</SPAN></st1:place></st1:country-region><SPAN style=
=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">'s Michael Frayn, ha=
s dense dialogue that heavily mines the study of nuclear physics at a critic=
al time in world history.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">The play searches for Heisenberg's motive in his risky=
 visit to Bohr: Is he searching for a piece of the good old collaborating da=
ys, simply showing off, or trying to manipulate a highly political, dangerou=
s situation? Those questions are never clearly answered. But Lucy Bredeson-S=
mith, who plays Bohr's blunt wife, Margrethe, offers warmth, humor and wisdo=
m as she holds mirrors up to each man to help them understand themselves.<o:=
p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Questions of motive and ethics kept me curious, but </=
SPAN><st1:City><st1:place><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FO=
NT-FAMILY: Verdana">Copenhagen</SPAN></I></st1:place></st1:City><I><SPAN sty=
le=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> </SPAN></I><SPAN=20=
style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">isn't what you'=
d call highly suspenseful.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Let's face it: This is a brainy play. Glowing reviews=20=
of the 2000 Tony Award-winning Broadway production described it as intellect=
ually stimulating and emotionally satisfying. The play won Tonys for best pl=
ay, best director and best featured actress.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">I left the Actors' </SPAN><st1:City><st1:place><SPAN s=
tyle=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Summit</SPAN></s=
t1:place></st1:City><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY=
: Verdana"> production more intellectually stimulated than emotionally satis=
fied. </SPAN><st1:City><st1:place><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: b=
lack; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Copenhagen</SPAN></I></st1:place></st1:City><I><=
SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> </SPAN></=
I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">is a ve=
ry serious work, loaded with scientific jargon and discussion.<o:p></o:p></S=
PAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">That's quite different from the celebrated math play <=
I>Proof, </I>which followed on the heels of </SPAN><st1:City><st1:place><I><=
SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Copenhagen=
</SPAN></I></st1:place></st1:City><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: b=
lack; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> </SPAN></I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR=
: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">as the 2001 Tony Award winner for best play.=20=
Although <I>Proof </I>revolves around math, it's really about family relatio=
nships. </SPAN><st1:City><st1:place><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR:=
 black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Copenhagen</SPAN></I></st1:place></st1:City><I=
><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana"> </SPAN>=
</I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">is mo=
re complex, intricate and cerebral in its treatment of science.<o:p></o:p></=
SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Thackaberry and Turney come across as alternately naiv=
e, as Thackaberry's Bohr assumes that all the work on nuclear fission alread=
y has been done (wrong), and Turney's Heisenberg assumes that scientists cou=
ld never gain enough critical mass to create an atomic bomb (wrong again).<o=
:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">We learn that Heisenberg races headlong into scientifi=
c discoveries and life experiences without thinking, while Bohr approaches e=
verything slowly and methodically.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">We want to dislike Turney's Heisenberg because he's wo=
rking for the Nazis. But Turney's urgency and uncertainty make us sympathize=
 with him.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">At the end of the first act, we think all of these sci=
entists' thought processes have been explored, but the play's second act exp=
lores more of Heisenberg and Bohr's old academic relationship.<o:p></o:p></S=
PAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Playwright Frayn's writing is rich in symbolism. Frayn=
, best known for his farce <I>Noises Off, </I>certainly has explored every n=
ook and cranny of these great minds in an attempt to explain what <I>might <=
/I>have been said at this dangerous, historic meeting. Historians have wonde=
red for years: Did this exchange between scientific geniuses have the power=20=
to alter the outcome of World War II?<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style=3D"LINE-HEIGHT: 13pt"><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black;=20=
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana">Just thinking about those implications is frightening.=
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P><st1:City><st1:place><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt;=
 COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Rom=
an'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-=
fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">Copenhagen</SPAN></I></st=
1:place></st1:City><I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMI=
LY: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-famil=
y: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;=
 mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"> </SPAN></I><SPAN style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 9pt; COLOR:=
 black; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; ms=
o-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-fareast=
-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA">is more historically enlightenin=
g than it is entertaining. But sometimes, that's what theater should be abou=
t.</SPAN></BODY></HTML>

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