[NEohioPAL] Berko review; THE WALWORTH FARCE @ DOBAMA and previews

[Roy Berko]

A challenging THE WALWORTH FARCE at Dobama
 
Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association)

--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--

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

--coolcleveland.com-

Humans are storytellers.  We use stories to pass information about cultures, 
persons and families.   We use stories to create our reality.  The Great Lie 
Theory purports that if we tell a story over and over we can convince ourselves 
that our fantasies are our realities.  THE WALWORTH FARCE, now in production at 
Dobama Theatre, is a showcase for the power of stories as a protective and 
manipulative tool.

Enda Walsh is a writer from the contemporary Irish theatre school.  He 
emphasizes characters and situations to showcase the “new” Ireland.  He uses 
words, in story form, to allow characters to articulate their lives.  

Don't go to see The WALWORTH FARCE expecting a hysterically funny play full of 
prat falls, hidden identities and funny incidents.  Yes, there is some 
cross-dressing and exaggerated humor, but this is more a modern tragedy than a 
farce.  Dinny, the father, is more Willy Loman of DEATH OF A SALESMAN, than 
Buster Keeton.  He is a misguided soul trying desperately to create a rewrite of 
his frustrating story.

The play concerns a play within a play in which three men perform a skit with a 
complicated plot that involves a dead mother, an inheritance, a brain surgeon 
and his wife, a younger brother, two sons and money.   Reality mixes freely with 
the fantasy. Sometimes it's hard to tell which is which.  And, that's the 
challenge for the audience and the power of the writing.

A New York review stated, “For the first few minutes of this ripping, warped 
family portrait, you're apt to feel that you've walked in on a Hibernian Three 
Stooges routine.”  You need to let the whole process sink in.  It may not hit 
you until the second act of how powerful the story is.  

Questions abound as the show evolves.  Why the wigs, the dresses, the bellowing, 
the rage over the chicken being replaced by a sausage, the mock coffins, the 
Monopoly money?  Why are the boys confined to their environment on the 12th 
floor of an elevatorless London building on Walworth Avenue?   At the end, in 
the midst of the horror, the whole bloody thing makes sense.

One thing is for sure, “if there were a prize for creating the most 
dysfunctional family ever presented on stage Enda Walsh would undoubtedly win 
it.”

The Dobama production, under the direction of Mark Moritz, is well paced and 
finely acted.  There are questions however, as to whether the cross dressing, 
absurdist early actions should have been broader, so that when reality sets in 
there would have been a clear separation of the play within a play and the play 
itself.  Though the overall effect of the acting is excellent, there is also 
questions of whether texturing the performance of Bob Goddard (Dinny, the 
father), so that he didn't start out yelling, might eliminate any doubt of his 
being maniacally driven, rather than having mood swings of reality versus 
self-imposed fiction.  Is Blake (the younger brother) dull-witted or just scared 
of life?  Daniel McElhaney's character development though dynamic, never clearly 
lets us know.  

On the other hand, Andrew Cruise, who has quickly proven that he is one of the 
finest actors in the area, was nothing short of brilliant as Sean, the only 
family member with any semblance of reality. The bodily ticks, stuttering 
speech, and panicked glances, all are right on target.  This is an exceptional 
performance, as is that of Carly Germany, as the grocery clerk who gets sucked 
into the gory tale.  Her terror is deep in her body, not on the surface.  She 
totally inhabits the character.

The entire cast is consistent in their Irish accents.

Ron Newell's set develops the appropriate visual elements.

CAPSULE JUDGEMENT:  THE WALWORTH FARCE is not an easy sit, but it is worth the 
effort if you are interested in storytelling, culture, and good acting.

THE WALWORTH FARCE runs through at Dobama.  Call 216-932-3396 for tickets.

PREVIEWS

DANCING WHEELS
Sept 25 & 26, 1 pm
INGENUITY FESTIVAL,
Under the Detroit-Superior Bridge

DANCE CLEVELAND/UNIVERSITY OF AKRON

KEIGWIN + COMPANY
New York City's hot, rising star, Keigwin 
The University of Akron's EJ Thomas Hall
Saturday, October 2 at 8 pm 
An evening of eclectic dances which includes the world premiere of Bolero 
Akron. 
Also, Triptych, Love Songs, Air and Wind.
Tickets, starting at $10, are available at www.ticketmaster.com, ticketmaster or 
by calling 1-800-745-3000. 

DOBAMA

A workshop “EDGES' of a Benj Pasek and Justin Paul musical presented by the 
Music Theatre Department of Baldwin Wallace College.  The times and ticket 
information will be announced.

'TELLING LIVES,' a play by Faye Sholiton, which examines what happens when an 
elderly mother asks her grown daughter to edit her newly written autobiography.  
December 15, 7 p.m., $5.
 
Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2001 through 
2010, 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.)