<div dir="ltr"><br><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</span><br><br>
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<p class=""><b style>Oft brilliant, but
flawed MEDEA, introduces new professional theatre company, “8”—a fund raiser at
CPH</b>
</p><p class="">Roy Berko</p>
<p class=""><span style="font-size:10pt">(Member, American Theatre
Critics Association, Cleveland Critics Circle)</span></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Mamaí,<span style>
</span>Cleveland’s newest professional theatre, opened its summer season with a
monumental undertaking, a staging of the U.S. premiere of Brendan Kennelly’s
translation and script modification of Euripides’ classic tragedy, MEDEA.<span style> </span></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">The company’s mission is “to create intelligent, relevant
classical theatre that offers an artistic home for Cleveland’s theatre artists,
and equal opportunity for women in the professional theatre community.”</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">MEDEA, considered by many theatre aficionados as one of the
greatest plays every written, relates the tale of revenge by Medea, the wife of
Jason (of the Argonauts).<span style> </span>Medea,
noted as a sorceress, was the daughter of Acetes, king of Colchis, who aided
Jason to accomplish his quest for the Golden Fleece.<span style> </span>Medea fell in love with Jason, killed or assisted in killing
her brother, and betrayed her father, in order to assist the handsome and
manipulative Jason.<span style> </span>They flee to
Corinth, where they live for about ten years, rearing two children in relative
peace, until Jason, an opportunist, leaves Medea and marries Glauce, the King
of Creon’s daughter, with his eye on the throne.<span style> </span></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Medea’s reaction is one of a scorned woman.<span style> </span>Jason’s betrayal turns her into a
vindictive psychopath intent on getting revenge at all costs.<span style> </span>She writhes in agony, rants with rage,
plots destruction, and acts with no conscience.<span style> </span>Asking “Why must a man always be seeking something?” she
contends she “will not be a woman civilized by men,” and rages against Jayson’s
infidelity and lack loyalty.<span style> </span>The
result is fiery death for Glauce and her father, the infanticide of her children,
and Jayson losing love, political position, and his heirs.<span style> </span></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Euripides leaves the viewer aware that Medea has wreaked her
revenge, but, he asks, “At what cost?”</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">MEDEA holds great importance in my theatrical training.<span style> </span>While attending the University of
Michigan I had the astonishing experience of working on a production of the script
with Dame Judith Anderson portraying Medea, and Jason Robards, Jr, as
Jason.<span style> </span>That script was the
traditional translation by poet Robinson Jeffers, who was also on the Wolverine
campus to share his views regarding the play.</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Though the basic story is the same, Brendan Kennelly’s
translation and enhancement makes changes in the plot and its development.<span style> </span>The chorus is mainly fragmented
into individual characters (a newscaster, several attorneys, a neighbor and a
barista).<span style> </span>The children are
girls rather than boys who would have been Jason’s heirs, carrying on his sperm
and name.<span style> </span>Medea no longer
flees in a dragon-pulled chariot provided by her grandfather, the Sun-God.<span style> </span>Jason does not collapse in defeat as
his dreams of power disappear, realizing his wrongs—a component of classical
tragedy.</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Kennelly and/or the director, Bernadette Clemens, have added
modern touches to the traditional aspects of the story.<span style> </span>Present are cell phones, i-pads,
lawyers, picket fences, and current language being overlaid over traditional
rhyme patterns.<span style> </span>Ancient staging
devices, such as speaking directly to the audience, are accompanied by
interactive spoken lines. </p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Mamaí’s production is filled with brilliance and
frustrations.<span style> </span></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Tracee Patterson’s emotional-breakdown performance is
amazing.<span style> </span>She grabs and holds every
scene in which she appears.<span style> </span>Her
only flaw, which is minor compared to the outstanding level of her acting, is
the difficulty in understanding some of her lines.<span style> </span>This was caused by her bending heavily at the waist to
illustrate angst, and the director’s pattern of having performers speak to the
back wall, cutting off understandable sound.<span style> </span>Yes, Ensemble’s Theatre’s stage, on which the play is being
performed, is a small space, but the hard walls and high ceilings causes sound
problems even when the actors are facing the audience, but when they don’t, the
words get totally lost.</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Also strong is Anne McEvoy’s presence as Medea’s lawyer.<span style> </span>Mary Jane Nottage’s opening monologue
was well presented, but much too long.<span style>
</span>Robert Hawkes was excellent as Creon, but one might question why the
role had overtones of comedy in both costume and tone.</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">In fact, the whole presence of farcical shticks, whether
during the scene changes, the song selections, the constant primping by Natalie
Green, as the newscaster, or the shenanigans of Jean Cummins as the drunk
neighbor, is open to debate.<span style> </span>These
actions often upstaged, drew attention away, from important speeches and
characters.<span style> </span>Inciting audience
laughter during high dramas scenes seemed inappropriate. <span style> </span>Was this done to relieve the angst or
was this attempts at humor.<span style> </span>If the
latter, why was this done in a tragedy?<span style>
</span>Only the director knows.</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="">Jason Kaufman, though displaying the sensual presence of
Jason, seemed divorced from performance involvement.<span style> </span>Even in the wrenching scene in which the dead bloodied
bodies of his children were brought on stage for his viewing and touching,
there appeared to be only surface level reaction.<span style> </span>(Why the bodies were brought out at all is another of those
directorial decisions that begs for explanation, especially with the audience
only a few feet from their overwhelming presence.)</p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class=""><i style>CAPSULE
JUDGEMENT:<span style> </span>MEDEA, a masterpiece
example of classical tragedy, is one of the Western world’s greatest plays. It
is a daunting undertaking.<span style> </span>Some directorial
decisions and story interpretation in this staging seem questionable, but the
production is blessed with a brilliant performance by Tracee Patterson. <span style> </span>It’s worth going just to see this
amazing actress spin her maniacal magic.</i></p>
<p class="" style="text-autospace:none"><span style> </span></p>
<p class="">Mamaí’s MEDEA runs through June 30 at the Ensemble
Theatre, housed in Coventry School, 2843 Washington Blvd, Cleveland
Heights.<span style> </span>For tickets go to:<span style> </span><a href="http://www.mamaitheatreco.org">http://www.mamaitheatreco.org</a></p>
<p class=""> </p>
<p class="" style="text-autospace:none"><b style><span style>CPH reading to support </span></b><b style><span style="color:rgb(63,63,63)">AFER and Cleveland PFLAG</span></b></p>
<p class="" style="text-autospace:none"><span style>Cleveland Play
House </span><span style>will
present a one-night-only reading of “8,” written by Dustin Lance Black (<i>Milk,
J. Edgar</i>). “8” is an account of the Federal District Court trial in <i>Perry
v. Schwarzenegger</i> (now before the Supreme Court as <i>Hollingsworth v.
Perry</i>), the case filed by American Foundation for Equal Rights to overturn
Proposition 8, which stripped gay and lesbian Californians of the freedom to
marry.</span></p>
<p class="" style="text-autospace:none"><span style> </span></p>
<p class=""><span style>This event will be held in the <span style>Allen
Theatre on Sunday, June 30, at 5:00 pm</span>. Tickets are $25 (includes
reading and post-show discussion), and $100 (includes priority seating for the
reading, post-discussion and a private reception with cast and special guests).
All net proceeds will be shared equally by the AFER and the Cleveland chapter
of Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG). Call
216-241-6000 or <i><a href="http://clevelandplayhouse.com">clevelandplayhouse.com</a></i> to purchase tickets. </span></p>
<span style></span><span style="color:rgb(255,0,0)">••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••</span><br><br><br></div>