[NEohioPAL]Berko review: FEFU AND HER FRIENDS (Cleveland Public Theatre)

[Roy Berko]

‘FEFU AND HER FRIENDS’ IS THEATRE AT ITS BEST AT CPT

Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association, Dance
Critics Association)

--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--

Lorain County Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News
Times--Olmsted-Fairview Times	

Maria Irene Fornes, the author of ‘FEFU AND HER
FRIENDS,’ now being creatively and impressively staged
at Cleveland Public Theatre, is generally recognized
as one of the most important feminist writers of the
day.  When asked to explain her style and what
playwriting is Fornes stated, "You are in heaven. It's
like a love affair. And everybody else can disapprove
of it and think you're an idiot, but when you had it,
you never forget it, and that is really what lives
inside you..." 

Fornes, a poet/playwright of Cuban-American stock,
writes poetically, often with an absurdist bent.  She
makes things appear out of kilter by the use of the
ridiculous, the overblown, the abstract.  She allows
the audience to come to their own conclusions as she
asks questions and creates scenes which often have an
abstract quality.

‘FEFU AND HER FRIENDS” concerns eight bright, unique
women who gather to plan  a program for the
educational society to which they belong.  Along the
way, they explore with humor and anguish their
relationships with men, other women, and, most
importantly, each other.   The year is 1935, long
before the era of feminism. 

The play, as conceived by Fornes, has a fascinating
staging concept.  The first act takes place in the
performance theatre space which is mounted as a living
room in an upper class New England home.  As the act
develops, the women arrive.  For the second act, the
audience is divided into four groups and is led by a
docent to varying parts of the Cleveland Public
Theatre complex.  The audience finds themselves
sequentially in a garden, a study, a bedroom and a
kitchen.  As each segment is acted, the sounds of the
other scenes can be heard in muted tones.  It makes
for a fascinating experience...it’s as though you are
eavesdropping on others while experiencing your part
of the world.   The third act returns us to the living
room set.

The staging device was not created by CPT director
Raymond Bobgan.  When the play was first written it
was staged in a New York loft   Fornes took advantage
of the rooms in the space by dividing the audience and
moving them from place-to-place.  The device gets the
audience involved in the process of the play and makes
the attender an active part of the experience.

What does the play mean?  A Fornes’ expert states,
“Though written in 1977, the message of ‘FEFU AND HER
FRIENDS’ remains ever the same: women don't know what
to do with feminism.  Or rather, they don't know what
to do with themselves. It's a strange, unsettling
play, not least because the strong women characters
are at a loss with each other and with themselves. 
Without a man to center around, they disintegrate into
cattiness and then madness.”  That’s one person’s
view.  Yours might be quite different and that’s what
makes the piece so fascinating.  You see the actions,
you hear the words, you then get to think for yourself
about the meaning. 

CPT’s production, under Raymond Bobgan, the venue’s
new artistic director, is superb.  The cast is
flawless, the pacing perfect, the devices all work. 
As in his past CPT works, ‘BLUE SKY TRANSMISSION:  A
TIBETAN BOOK OF THE DEAD’ and ‘THE CONFESSIONS OF
PUNCH AND JUDY,’ this is an impressive production. 
Theatre goers can only look forward to more and more
of his creativity in plays to come.

The actors are a unity cast.  No one stands out, they
all stand out.  Jill Levin, (Fefu), Chris Seibert,
Elizabeth Wood, Holly Holsinger, Anne McEvoy, Denise
Astorino, Christine McBurney and Maggie Arndt each
develops a unique and complete image.  Each clearly
achieves the character’s  self-definition.  They don’t
act, they are.  

The sets all work well.  No set designer is listed in
the program, but he or she deserves praise.  Joan
Horvitz’s costumes and Donald Wasson’s hats help set a
perfect era-correct feel.  Trad Burns lighting aids
the illusion.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT:  CPT’s ‘FEFU AND HER FRIENDS’ is
one of the best local productions of the season.  Be
warned, however, that if you are an advocate of
escapist comedy or light musicals, this may not be
your cup of tea.  The play requires a probing mind to
allow the attender to achieve the maximum effect. 
Those who come to the theatre with that curiosity will
be overjoyed by the experience!

‘FEFU AND HER FRIENDS’ runs through June 17 at
Cleveland Public Theatre.  For tickets call
216-631-2727.



Roy Berko's web page can be found at www.royberko.info.  His theatre and dance reviews appear on NeOHIOpal, an on-line source.   To subscribe to this free service via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.fredsternfeld.com/mailman/listinfo/neohiopal.

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com