[NEohioPAL] Review of "Yankee Tavern" at Chagrin Valley Little Theatre

[Bob Abelman]

Saddle up to the 'Yankee Tavern' for a cup of conspiracy

 

Bob Abelman

 

News-Herald, Chagrin Valley Times, Solon Times,

The Morning Journal, Geauga Times Courier

Member, American Theatre Critics Association 

 

This review will appear in the Times papers on 2/16/12

 

 

All good conspiracies are a delicate balance of undeniable fact and plausible fabrication, creating dynamic tension between the two.  So too is "Yankee Tavern," an entertaining amalgamation of comedy and mystery currently on stage at the Chagrin Valley Little Theatre.  

 

Steven Dietz's "Yankee Tavern" takes place five years after 9/11; a time when America's collective psyche was still reeling from the after-shock of the tragedy and our understanding of what transpired remained unclear and woefully incomplete.  What better time to infuse conjecture and paranoia into an earnest search for answers.

 

The play unfolds in a run-down New York neighborhood watering hole; a place where tall tales thrive and urban myths are born.  What better place to lay out all the provocative 9/11 coincidences and weave together the mother of all conspiracy theories.

 

Tension is established from the get-go in this play, as we walk in on a spat over wedding invitations between Adam (Christopher DiMichele), the young, reluctant owner of the bar, and his fiancee, Janet (Amy Pelleg).  It escalates upon the entrance of Ray (Bob Fortlage), the bar's last remaining regular and a man fanatically devoted to revealing and relentlessly relaying the truths behind government cover-ups, military secret ops, and scientific bait-and-switch. Tension kicks into a new gear upon the arrival of Palmer (Don Bernardo), a mysterious stranger who knows things. 

 

What is so wonderful about this play and Don Edelman's direction of it is that, amidst all the undeniable fact and plausible fiction, an element of doubt is as omnipresent as the tormented souls that haunt the bar and as pungent as the stench of stale beer.

 

We come to doubt Adam's schoolboy innocence as the details of his relationship with a female mentor and the nature of his Master's thesis are revealed, and we are given reason to question Janet's fidelity as well.  What is it about these two?  We doubt Ray's sanity as he argues with equal conviction the credible conspiracy behind 9/11 and his belief that the fall of Communism was a scheme cooked up between the Kremlin and Disney, who wanted the story rights.  Does he really know what he's talking about?  And because Palmer, who comes with his own psychological baggage, is the one who brings all these questions to the forefront, we doubt his intentions?  Who the hell is he?  All this makes for an intriguing piece of storytelling.

 

What is not so wonderful about this play, and which claims individual performances as its victims, is its occasionally numbing verbosity. 

 

While the story is engrossing, much of it-particularly all the assorted conspiracy stuff--is relayed though extended monologues delivered by Ray.  Mr. Fortlage handles his many words and his character's quirkiness like the stage veteran he is, but his intent to get them out correctly, cleanly and quickly results in a lack of variety and texture.  Some of the built-in comedy suffers accordingly.

 

In contract, much of the dialogue between Adam and Janet is curt and leaves little opportunity for real human emotion to play out.  Ms. Pelleg handles these exchanges more naturally and with greater ease than does Mr. DiMichele, who occasionally overcompensates by trying to do too much with the little he is given.  As the former insider Palmer, Mr. Bernardo delivers his words with wonderful concentrated force that adds punctuation to everything.

 

The intimate confines of CVLT's River Street Playhouse, enhanced by the attention to detail found in set designer Edmond Wolff's well-worn tavern, places the audience at a side table eavesdropping on the goings on.  Considering that this play is intended to contribute to the public discussion and debate about 9/11, it is hard not to chime in on the staged conversation and add your own two cents worth.  

 

"Yankee Tavern" continues through February 25 at the Chagrin Valley Little Theatre's River Street Playhouse, 40 River Street, Chagrin Falls.  For tickets, which are $10, call 440-247-8955 or visit www.cvlt.org.

 
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