Eclipse Theatre
Performing at the Athenaeum Theatre
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.com
Through December 8
John Guare’s Landscape of the Body may be one of his lesser known plays, but that does not mean that it packs any less of a punch than his other, better known plays - among them The Loveliest Afternoon of the Year and Six Degrees of Separation. Eclipse Theatre Company has chosen to end it’s all-John Guare season with this complex play, and they have done an admirable job.
In Landscape of the Body, Guare’s murder mystery/black comedy, the action moves mostly in reverse. The play begins with aptly-named Betty Yearn (Kerry Cox), sitting by a stream, putting messages in bottles. Betty is joined by Captain Marvin Holahan (Gary Summers), a policeman who investigated the death and decapitation of her son Bert (Brian Sutow). A narrator, Betty’s sister Rosemary (Julie Daley), brings us back to gritty New York - introducing the scenes, commenting on the action, and eventually leading us back to the day of Bert’s murder.
One of the play’s problems is its length, which might have been less of a problem with better pacing. Subsequently, the pacing problem might have been fixed by a scene design better suited for the limitations of the small Athenaeum studio theatre.
Another potential pitfall is the play’s film noir feel, which requires actors who fully understand its complexity. Fortunately, director Steve Scott has assembled a highly competent cast. Scott keeps a dark tone throughout, especially in the haunting music interludes. The actors, especially Kerry Cox’s conflicted Betty, Gary Simmers’ determined Holahan, Julie Daley’s sexy and mysterious Rosalie, and Anish Jethmalani, as the owner of a disreputable travel agency, give top notch performances. Other notable performances are turned in by Brian Sutow, Kevin Scott and Linsey Page Morton.
Eclipse’s Landscape of the Body is a very competent production of a very difficult and seldom-performed play by John Guare, one of our finest living playwrights. It’s worth a visit.
