[NEohioPAL] Berko review: MILITANT LANGUAGE (Bang and Clatter--Cleveland)

[Roy Berko]

‘MILITANT
LANGUAGE’—a script which asks more questions than it answers
 
Roy Berko
 
(Member, American
Theatre Critics Association)
 
--THE TIMES
NEWSPAPERS--
 
Lorain
County Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News Times--Olmsted-Fairview Times  
 
‘MILITANT LANGUAGE:  A PLAY IN THE SAND,’ is in a unique
production cycle.  The script is
simultaneously being world premiered at Cleveland’s Bang and Clatter, Theatre
of Cincinnati, Available Light [Theatre] of Columbus, Halcyon Theatre in
Chicago and Next Stage in Seattle.
 
Set in modern day Iraq,
the story unfolds from an opening scene in which a pair of American soldiers
return from a routine surveillance detail filled with angst.  What
happened? As that unanswered question becomes an underlying issue, a Captain
fights to control his troops as they find themselves involved in a secret
homosexual affair, the sexual abuse of a female soldier, a  search for a missing Iraqi boy, and a
baby found in the desert, ala Moses.  
 
The script is filled with
visions  and illusions of violence
begetting violence, lies resulting in more lies, and questions of whether truth
can be born from honesty.  It wraps
up with the question, “Does war make no more sense than sand raining from the
heavens?”
 
The setting is an
unspecified building site.   What’s going on?  What’s
really going on?  A question that
the script doesn’t really answer.  Sean Christopher Lewis, the play’s author says that ‘MILITANT LANGUAGE’is "a play about responsibility in a world
that doesn't make sense anymore."  And, one can only wonder if the unidentified site is a metaphor for the
damage of war, when things aren’t built but rather are destroyed.  And, whether the U.S. foray into Iraq
was a flight of Bush ego, which has resulted in the destruction of not only
that country but the economy and self-pride of the US.  
 
We see Pfc. Marcus Goop conflicted about a violent act in
which he was a participant.  Pfc.
Emma Beed is placed in degrading female roles, including being raped.  Sensitive and gay Pfc. Andrew Wallace
mostly wants to sing Country songs, but he soon gets swept up in the
turbulence.  Pfc. Damian Jacks is
obsessed with being a macho man-boy soldier.  And Capt. Davis Crain is faced with spinning chaos seemingly
beyond his control.   
 
Sounds like an
interesting concept and set of characters.  If the play was more focused on a clarity of purpose, and
the characters fully fleshed out, it would have been a better evening of
theatre.  But, even with the
script’s weaknesses, director Daniel Taylor should have been  able to mold the production into a more
cohesive unit.  The combination of
some misguided directing, including slow pacing, awkward blocking and unfocused
characterizaions, made the 90-minutes seem like twice that long.  Taylor needed to help some of his
actors develop clear personas by working with them to understand each
individual as a real person.
 
Michael May is excellent
as Marcus Goop.  He is consistent
in his textured performance.   Scott Thomas is properly tender and naïve as Wallace.
 
Raina Semivan (Beed) has
some good moments and Jocelyn Roueiheb is acceptable, as Huda, an Iraqi in
search of the lost boy.  However,
both were on the surface and could have developed deeper characterizations.
 
Rick Bowling yells his
lines, many of which lacked idea clarity due to his shouting words rather than
stressing the meanings of his words.  And Joshua Davis seems to have no clue of the underpinnings of the role
of Damian.   He’s like a
verbal Ken doll, dressed in red, white and blue boxers, which are definitely
not Army issue. 
 
Capsule
judgment:   Bang and Clatter’s
MILITANT LANGUAGE misses the mark on two counts…the script is of questionable
construction and the production qualities are often weak.  It’s going to be interesting to read
the reviews of other productions to see what, if anything, B&G audiences
may have missed out on.
 
‘MILITANT LANGUAGE’ runs
through  May 2 at The Bang and
Clatter’s Cleveland Public Square Theatre. For tickets call 330-606-5317.
 
GOOD NEWS
FOR B & G ATTENDERS:  B&G’s downtown Cleveland parking
problem solved:  park in the garage
located at 515 Euclid Avenue (the entrance is on 6th street), get
your ticket validated at the B & G box office, and pay only $2.50 for
parking.  The garage, though
convenient to the theatre, is a maze.  Note carefully where you park.   My first sojourn into the garage resulted in a 20
minute search for my car after the final curtain.
 B&G’s next Cleveland production is ‘THE SUNSET LIMITED’ by Cormac
McCarthy, from April 2-May 2.  In
Akron, ‘WRECKS,’ a play by Neil LaBute, one of my favorite playwrights, will be
performed from April 2-25. 

 Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2001 through 2009, as well as his consulting and publications information, can be found at http://royberko.info

His reviews can also be found on www.coolcleveland.com and NeOHIOpal (to subscribe visit http://mailman.listserve.com/listmanager/listinfo/neohiopal.)