Medea
Classic Greek goes backyard realism at American Theatre Company .
Medea herself soon enters, and tells one and all that she plans to exact a fearsome revenge on Jason; that nothing less will do than murdering his new bride, and her own children. Medea waivers briefly over sacrificing her sweet and innocent sons--she knows full well the horror of the act and how it will destroy her emotionally--but she carries out her plan nonetheless. Having already made the boys unwitting accomplices in the deaths of the princess, Medea knows that the state will kill her boys in any case, even if she spares them.
So the fascination with Medea--and it does both fascinate and horrify audiences--isn't in the story, but in the telling; isn't in the action but in the characters; isn't in the events, but in the motives. A model of compression, it plays out in one act of 95 minutes, in which the tension must constantly rise, bringing audiences to the edge of their seats, not with the question of "will she or won't she," but with the question "how could she?" In such a condensed work, every word is heightened speech, and even the most intimate or casual scenes are not ordinary conversation. A pointed and elevated style is required, not psychological realism.
This is precisely the rock upon which director Brian Russell has stumbled in this new production of Medea at the American Theatre Company (ATC). The hoped-for tension--rising to that emotional release through terror and pity known as catharsis--isn't there, despite strong lead performances and a vigorous, uncluttered new translation by Nicholas Rudall. Russell, who is the ATC artistic director, undercuts the tension by staging dialogue scenes in the manner of ordinary conversation. Now, he doesn't do it all the time, and the production is very far from a failure, but it happens enough to rob Medea of its full potential.
In one of the most anticipated performances of the year, ATC ensemble member Carmen Roman (winner of a 1999 Joseph Jefferson Award for her portrayal of Maria Callas in Master Class) takes on Medea. She brings physical stature and noble bearing, and a deep and rolling voice, to the role. She also possesses a pitiable understanding of the trap in which Medea finds herself, often expressed through the eyes or through a sadness around the mouth. "I understand the horror of what I must do. But passion is stronger than reason, and passion is the grief of the world," Medea says in the play's most fundamental line.
Another 1999 Jeff Award winner, Yasen Peyankov, is Jason. He brings a stalwart, world-weary, even slightly cynical quality to the role; a manliness without braggadocio. Peyankov's receding hairline and trim but un-heroic physique also provide Jason with a middle-aged look, and suggested a hero who may have outsmarted his opponents, rather than outfought them.
Russell has chosen a timeless look for the production that has both classical and contemporary reference. Scenic designer Scott Cooper provides what appears to be an iron-clad and rusting palace, filling the stage with solid and windowless walls. Dead vines cling to the side, and a curving staircase sweeps out on one side, the only way in or out. It could be modern or ancient architecture. One criticism: fully half the house can't see a platform where two live musicians play Eastern-influenced music (composed by ATC ensemble member Dawn Bach); music which mainly backs the choral odes.