Lydie Breeze
Written by John Guare
Directed by Jeremy Garrett
Greenhouse Theater, 2257 N. Lincoln (map)
thru Nov 10 | tickets: $20 | more info
Half-price tickets available here.
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Inconsistent production favors mythic tone over authenticity
Ka-Tet Theatre presents
Lydie Breeze
Review by Patrick Dyer
Setting plays a vital role to any drama. Heck, theater is the art-form practically designed to evoke a mythic setting. But does that make it the most important aspect of any drama? Not really. It can give the onstage action a sense of place and tone, but it’s not the definitive part, and making it the definitive part can take away from the characters and their motivations. And unfortunately, this is a problem found in Ka-Tet Theatre Company’s production of John Guare’s Lydie Breeze.
The play takes place in a developing commune outside of Nantucket called “Aitopu” (that’s “utopia” spelled backwards) headed by a former Civil War veteran named Joshua Hickman (Michael Pacas) along with his two daughters – Gussie (Stevie Chaddock Lambert), a secretary from Washington D.C., and Lydie (Laura Jewell), a temporarily blinded young girl – as well as their maidservant and tutor Beaty (Julia Stemper). Years ago, Joshua murdered his best friend Dan Grady who slept with his wife Lydie Breeze which lead to Joshua’s incarceration and Lydie Breeze’s subsequent suicide. But now the son of Dan Grady, Jeremiah (Mitch Conti), has returned to this commune to confront Joshua and reunite with his former lover Beaty, bringing back a shattered past that haunts the Hickmans to this day.
John Guare creates a very interesting set-up for the action of his play, but he seems more fixated on creating a mythic feel and setting instead of allowing the troubled pasts of his characters to really explode onstage. His characters have the potential to be complex and engaging, but instead are only partially developed so Guare can show off his “witty” writing. This makes the characters feel incomplete and their actions come across confusing rather than deep. For example, why does Jeremiah attempt to molest Lydie (the daughter) when he meets her for the first time, and why doesn’t Beaty act more shocked when Lydie tells her what Jeremiah did? In fact, why is Beaty still in love with Jeremiah? Guare wants to capture a “poetic” atmosphere where the characters talk in over-written diatribes with each other which come at the expense of the characters’ logic even in the world of the play. The confrontation between Joshua and Jeremiah at the end of Act I is especially disappointing as Jeremiah doesn’t even throw a punch at the man who killed his father and instead rambles on about how great of an actor he once was in London. Act I has the right set-ups but the wrong pay-offs, and Act II just feels like Guare gave up on the plot, particularly with Gussie running off to Europe with a man she’s never even met named Lucian Rock (Joe Feliciano) who spotted her in the marketplace and suddenly decided to marry.
Director Jeremy Garrett brings out the mythic quality of Guare’s script but can’t successfully bring out the characters and storyline (try as he may). However, he does manage to bring energy and passion from his cast, though at times this can result in some performances being inauthentic and over-the-top. Pacas as Joshua brings much flavor to his dialogue, but doesn’t take his character as seriously as he should. Jewell is appropriately naïve and wide-eyed as Lydie, though she struggles to capture the physical traits of being blind. Lambert is strong and assertive as Gussie and manages to pull her character through her implausible actions. Stemper is passionate and intense as Beaty, resulting in probably the most authentic performance of the production. Conti seems to think that shouting is good acting and at times is too strong for such an intimate theater space. Kevin Lambert is energetic as Jude Emerson, a local bird watcher, but even he can’t escape from the fact that his character only serves as “comic relief” and as the play’s main source of exposition. Feliciano makes the most of his very brief and abrupt character, but his scene can only ring false as he’s only there to give Gussie a last-minute excuse to run away.
Lydie Breeze might be rich in atmosphere and style, but that doesn’t really matter if it overtakes the characters and storyline. Setting and tone enrich drama; they aren’t the center of it. And while this production tries to rise above the faults in Guare’s script, it ultimately rings hollow as the play comes to an inauthentic (and abrupt) end.
Rating: ★★
Lydie Breeze continues through November 10th at Greenhouse Theater, 2257 N. Lincoln (map), with performances Thursdays-Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays 3pm. Tickets are $20, and are available by phone (773-404-7336) or online through GreenhouseTheater.com (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at KaTetTheatre.org. (Running time: 2 hours, includes an intermission)
artists
cast
Laura Jewell (Lydie Hickman), Julia Stemper (Beaty), Stevie Chaddock Lambert (Gussie Hickman), Michael Pacas (Joshua Pickman), Kevin Lambert (Jude Emerson), Mitch Conti (Jeremiah Grady), Joe Feliciano (Lucian Rock)
behind the scenes
Jeremy Garrett (director), Caitlin Boylan (stage manager & props), Tianyu Qiu (set), Karen M. Thompson (lighting), Robert P. Lloyd (sound), Shawn Quinlan (costumes), Zeke Hafenrichter (technical director)
13-1027
