Words by Kristen Fogle
“Dead Man’s Cell Phone” (DMCP), by Sarah Ruhl, is both charming and edgy, quaint and quirky, fun and somber. “DMCP” tackles technology, more specifically cell phone use, and champions the idea that the very device meant to connect is actually eroding those relationships we are supposedly maintaining.
The play opens on cute but nondescript Jean, who is enjoying some quiet time in a café…until a persistent cell phone ring interrupts her calm. As the title of the show has given away, the cell phone’s owner has died. Peculiarly, Jean keeps the phone belonging to Gordon, the dead man, and takes it upon herself to answer it and even do Gordon’s bidding in the process. This leads her to encounter Gordon’s mistress (simply billed as Other Woman); Hermia, his wife; Mrs. Gottlieb, his mother; and Dwight, his brother. Jean is compelled to lie to everyone she meets to spare their feelings; she even finds her way into a life threatening situation involving Gordon’s shady former business dealings. Things turn interesting when Jean and Dwight form a connection and become downright bizarre when Jean has a chance to meet up with Gordon again in Act Two.
Jo Anne Glover (Jean) portrays a refreshing childlike enthusiasm, which (sort of) explains her odd need to protect the obviously flawed Gordon, played by Matt Thompson. Besides playing a hell of a corpse, when Gordon speaks to us again from “beyond,” he offers some refreshing insight into how one embodies a true bad guy, as well as how our society aides in setting us up to become one. Kathryn Herbruck plays a resplendent Mrs. Gottlieb with perhaps the best lines; she has developed a character whose abrasive humor continually produces laugh after laugh. Adding to the dysfunction is Lisel Gorell-Getz’s Hermia, an unhappy upper class housewife who is about as vile as her husband. We see Yolanda Franklin in dual roles, playing both Gordon’s mistress as well as his business associate. In both roles she comically commands our attention. Dwight, played by Jonathan Sachs, is the normal if sentimental one of the family. (On a side note, due to an affection rarely expressed for paper goods, I have come to love stationary the way Jean and Dwight do through Sachs and Glover’s romantic flourishe.)
Besides fine actors adding to “DMCP,” (it should be mentioned that Glover is a founder member and managing director of Moxie, Getz is Director of Education), there are many other aspects that make this show worth watching. Delicia Turner Sonnenberg directs (another founding member of Moxie), making good use of the entire stage in her careful blocking (which includes both a fight and a love scene!); Christopher Ward impresses with exceptional set design that encompasses sliding doors that reveal a towering array of baggage in one scene, an intentionally gaudy dining room in another; Jason Bieber (Lighting Design) and Matt Lescault-Wood (Sound Design) lend their talents to frame more tender scenes and successfully replicate the look and feel of a subway.
There is a lot to ruminate on in this play—the manner by which connections can be strangely forged, the power of lies that are intentioned for good, the way that the deceased are ultimately suppressed of their lesser qualities just by virtue of being dead, and how mobile devices can render us ugly. This piece reminds us of our disregard of real interaction in favor of the electronic device and how we are able to share our private, many times putrid selves to the whole world as we spout words everyday in front of complete strangers while having conversations with others. This play ultimately does not feel negative but hopeful—the experience with Gordon has shown Jean a truth, and her simple appreciation and love of Dwight is one worthy of emulation and a good reminder that even if just on stage, perhaps those emotions are still well and good in the world.
As said previously, Moxie is behind Sarah Ruhl’s newest piece (which won the Helen Hays award for best new play, adding to numerous awards for her other works—including a Pulitzer Prize nomination). Moxie is no stranger to highlighting award winning, high quality work; the Rolando based space has produced plays such as “Bleeding Kansas” and “The Sugar Syndrome” and will feature “A Raisin in the Sun” after the run of “DMCP.” Besides showcasing really good pieces, the Moxie mission is commendable: to create more diverse and honest images of women for our culture by producing primarily female playwrights with special attention given to plays which defy stereotypes of what women are writing about and expanding the idea of what is feminine. In the dictionary, “moxie” is defined as “courage, pluck, gumption, perseverance, and guts.” From what I have seen from the company thus far, they clearly embody these terms, pushing their audience to further develop ideas and draw rich connections from their interesting, expressive work.
Dead Man’s Cell Phone
Moxie Theatre
10/7-11/6
6663 El Cajon Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92115
(619) 460-7700
www.moxietheatre.com
To see the original article, please visit http://sdtheatrereviews.com/arts.php?newsId=255 and http://artsnfashion.com/index.php/component/content/article/49/124-dead-mans-cell-phone-review-by-kristen-fogle
No comments:
Post a Comment