Good for Otto
Written by David Rabe
The Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Milwaukee (map)
thru Nov 22 | tix: $20-$35 | more info
Check for half-price tickets
Psychologically clever; dramatically uninteresting
The Gift Theatre presents
Good for Otto
Review by Keith Glab
Michael Patrick Thornton, co-founder and artistic director of The Gift Theatre, staged a coup by convincing Tony-award winning playwright David Rabe to launch the world premiere of his newest play on a stage that is off the beaten path of Chicago’s theatrical scene. Perhaps even more so, given that Good for Otto requires a cast of 15 and The Gift Theatre prides itself in being Chicago’s most intimate equity theater space.
Rabe’s plot, unfortunately, is anything but. Based on material from Richard O’Connor‘s self-help book Undoing Depression, Good for Otto weaves together two psychologists’ experiences with a myriad of patients. The common thread linking most of the patients’ problems is parental issues and the internalized self-blame for the actions and feelings of others. Indeed, one of the psychologists, Dr. Robert Michaels (John Gawlik), remains literally haunted by his mother’s suicide some 34 years prior.
Brittany Burch portrays this spectral Mother idea for Dr. Michaels and many of his patients. Her stoic performance gets chilling at times when she affects the other characters’ actions as an unseen force and when she locks eyes with every member of the audience in direct address. Other characters also alternate between direct address of the audience and relating stories to their therapist, which makes the three-hour production somewhat exposition heavy.
Fortunately the Gift’s strong ensemble under Thornton’s dynamic direction makes what would otherwise be a muddled narrative engaging. Rob Riley‘s 75-year-old Barnard naturalistically bursts with personality despite his struggling to leave his bed. John Connolly‘s autistic Timothy rings true with his awkward physicality and repetitive vocal intonation. In an interesting turn, his character serves as the parental figure to a sick hamster named Otto. There are a couple of uncharacteristically one-note performances in the cast, owing perhaps to 15 characters not all getting enough stage time, even in a lengthy production.
I have no problem with a three-hour time investment at the theater if it culminates in a satisfying payoff, but that’s not the case with Good for Otto. Each of the patients’ story threads comes to varying degrees of resolution, which proves realistic enough. But the overarching affect of these episodes on the psychologists also proves minimal. Much of what the audience is supposed to take from the experience gets spoon-fed to them in direct address rather than realized in the dramatic unfolding.
Good for Otto contains plenty of interesting moments and boasts much psychological cleverness. The weak narrative arc makes it less dramatically interesting than is should be, however. The final product falls short of expectations for a writer of Rabe’s pedigree and a theater company as consistently excellent as The Gift.
Rating: ★★½
Good for Otto continues through November 22nd at The Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Milwaukee (map), with performances Thursdays-Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sundays 2:30pm. Tickets are $20-$35, and are available by phone (773-283-7071) or online through Vendini.com (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at TheGiftTheatre.org. (Running time: 3 hours, includes an intermission)
Photos by Claire Demos
artists
cast
Cyd Blakewell (Marcy), Brittany Burch (Mother), John Connolly (Timothy), Paul D’Addario (Jimmy), Patricia Donegan (Teresa Gilchrist), John Gawlik (Dr. Robert Michaels), Caroline Heffernan (Frannie), Alexandra Main (Jane), Donna McGough (Mrs. Garland), Kenny Mihlfried (Jerome), Darci Nalepa (Nora), Lynda Newton (Evangeline Ryder), Rob Riley (Barnard Gilchrist), Justine Serino (Denise), Jay Worthington (Alex)
behind the scenes
Michael Patrick Thornton (director), Sommer Austin, Derek Barton (asst. directors), Courney O’Neill (set design), Christopher Kriz (sound design), Charles Cooper (lighting desig), Rita Thornton (props design), Stephanie Cluggish (costume design), Corinne James (stage manager), Claire Demos (photos)
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