Review: The Letters (Writers’ Theatre)

The Letters

Written by John W. Lowell
Directed by Kimberly Senior
at Books on Vernon, Glencoe (map)
thru March 3 | tickets: $35-$70   | more info

Check for half-price tickets

Shades of 1984

Writers’ Theatre presents

The Letters

Review by Leah A. Zeldes

Inspired by the alleged efforts of the Soviet Union to expunge any hints of homosexuality from composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s personal papers, The Letters is set in the office of the unnamed Director of an unnamed government department in 1930s. For Writers’ Theatre’s Chicago premiere, Scenic Designer Jack Magaw and Properties Designer Nick Heggestad have set the stage with great historical accuracy, down to the paintings of Lenin and Stalin and the map reading “C.P.C.P.” on the wall and Russian labels on the filing cabinet. And yet, the play could really take place at any time and any place.

It could be the near future George Orwell envisioned when he wrote “1984” in 1949, set in the fictional superstate of Oceania. And it could be post-9/11 America. Orwell was a few years off when he wrote about the totalitarian society ruled by the all-seeing Big Brother, where inadvertent crimethink could render you an unperson, but we’re getting closer to it.

In this two-actor play, produced in Writers’ intimate back-of-the-bookstore theater, Kate Fry and Mark L. Montgomery create a tension-filled, paranoia-tinged dance. At first, the Director takes the lead, Montgomery ramping up from subtly to blatantly menacing, but ultimately his subordinate, Anna, dominates Fry moving from nervous to cowed but emerges powerful. Anna is no Winston Smith.

She has been called to her superior’s office for ambiguous reasons. Bit by bit, tortuously, the Director reveals his reasons for summoning her, as she closemouthed and eager to escape the uncomfortable interview, backs away, until the tables turn. The audience is never quite sure of the truth behind what the characters say and do.

The play, performed without intermission in an hour and a quarter, seems more brief episode in Orwell’s world than a full exploration of its implications, so the plot is somewhat unsatisfying, particularly as the scenario becomes more and more contrived. Orwell created a much more complex and interesting society.

Fine acting, however, redeems the script. Visually and audibly expressive, both Fry and Montgomery convey the building pressure with impressive body language and tone. Director Kimberly Senior’s staging keeps the actors moving, preventing the play from bogging down in dialogue, and the pacing is exemplary.

I don’t know whether the sexual tension between the characters was written in by playwright John W. Lowell or introduced by Senior, but I found myself wondering whether the play would have worked without it. In particular, there is one scene in which the two of them fall into a rather evil embrace that I found jarring. Perhaps that was the point.

Rating: ★★★

The Letters continues through March 3rd at Books on Vernon, 664 Vernon, Glencoe (map), with performances Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 7:30pm; Thursdays and Fridays at 8 p.m.; Saturdays at 4 and 8 p.m.; Sundays at 2 and 6 p.m. Tickets are $35-$70, and are available by phone (847-242-9418) or online here (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at WritersTheatre.org. (Running time: 1 hour 15 minutes, no intermission)