Coyote on a Fence
Written by Bruce Graham
Directed by Mikey Laird
at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee (map)
thru Oct 27 | tickets: $20-$25 | more info
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Death row drama big on ideas, short on character
Emergent Theatre presents
Coyote on a Fence
Review by Patrick Dyer
In an interview with Ernie Manouse, playwright Terrence McNally (Master Class, Love! Valor! Compassion!) was asked whether or not a play should have a “message” to which he immediately responded: “No. I think people should carry away feelings… If you can change people’s hearts, maybe you could change their minds.” I was constantly reminded of this segment while watching Emergent Theatre Company’s production of Coyote on a Fence, a play by Bruce Graham that tackles the sensitive topic of capital punishment.
The play begins with a police officer named Shauna DuChamps (Lisa Stran) at a bar talking about life on death row. Then we meet John Brennan (Jim Saltouros), a former drug addict on death row accused of murder even though he claims to be innocent. Right next to his cell is newcomer Bobby Reyburn (Casey Kells), a religiously fundamentalist and anti-Semitic racist from the Deep South who burned an entire congregation of a black church. As John fights for his innocence by befriending a reporter named Sam Fried (Peter Goldsmith) from the New York Times, he builds a friendship of sorts with Bobby and even tries to help his case by having him plead guilty for reasons of insanity. But all Bobby wants is to get to Heaven because he hates being in a world alongside blacks and Jews.
Writing plays with a “message” (especially if it’s political) is a tricky arena to play in. Characters can be left under-developed to make room for the playwright to make his or her case about a certain subject. And unfortunately, that’s the case here with Coyote on a Fence. Rather than creating characters that behave spontaneously and speak with their own individual voices, Graham sticks to tired archetypes for his characters, like the serial killer being a white religious fanatic, the scholarly innocent prisoner, or the tough no-nonsense police officer who’s “seen it all.” Instead of genuinely behaving with one another, the characters either speak in smarmy, ironic back-and-forths, awkward jokes, or over-written backstory monologues as they plod along from scene to scene without strong motivation for their actions. For example, why does John Brennan care so much about Bobby’s case outside of generic moral objections? Were racism and religion the only reasons why Bobby killed all of those innocent people? And why does Sam Fried care so much about capturing John Brennan’s story in the newspaper? Character motivation has to be specific or else the audience can’t find a good enough reason to care.
Despite all of that, director Mikey Laird and his cast manage to bring forth energy and passion to this production, even if the characters’ motivations are muddled. Laird keeps the production moving at a strong pace with fluid staging using Lauren Angel-Nichols’ creative set design. Saltouros is intense and passionate as the scholarly John Brennan, giving this production most of its powerful moments. Kells captures the physical traits and optimism of Bobby Reyburn, but seems a little too articulate for an uneducated redneck. Stran makes the most of her part and has an effective scene with John Brennan, putting her foot down after he lashes out at the reporter during an interview. Goldsmith is a bit one-note, but to be fair the character is really only there as a plot device.
Overall, Coyote on a Fence is big on ideas and morality, but short on character and motivation. While there is some interesting dialog around capital punishment and how effective it really is in a civilized society, ideas and themes shouldn’t be the first thing to come to mind after watching a play. Characters, behavior, motivation for their actions, and feelings will always be more interesting than the playwright’s opinions on a given subject.
Rating: ★★½
Coyote on a Fence continues through October 27 at The Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee (map), with performances Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm, Sundays 3pm. Tickets are $20-$25, and are available by phone (773-609-2336) or online through BuyPayTix.com (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at EmergentTheatre.org. (Running time: 1 hour 40 minutes, includes an intermission)
artists
cast
Casey Kells (Bobby Reyburn), Jim Saltouros (John Brennan), Lisa Stran (Shawna DuChamps), Peter Goldsmith (Sam Fried)
behind the scenes
Mikey Laird (director), Marlana Carlson (stage manager), Lauren Angel-Nichols (set design & graphics), Gina Patterson (lighting), John Ofori (technical director & head carpenter), Isaac Nichols (sound design), Jim Saltouros (producer)
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