The Shadow Box
Written by Michael Cristofer
Directed by Toma Tavares Langston
at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark (map)
thru Dec 23 | tickets: $25 | more info
Check for half-price tickets
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Funny and poignant premiere for brand new company
rebekah theatre project presents
The Shadow Box
Review by Clint May
Although this is not in any way a holiday show, I couldn’t help but be reminded of a Christmas classic being staged elsewhere while viewing The Shadow Box, wherein three terminally ill people find themselves “fellow travellers to the grave.” In one 24-hour period, each of them will be visited by their past, learn to cherish the present, and resolve to hope in the face of a short future. The rebekah theatre project (rtp)—new to the Chicago theatre scene—begins with a multi-award-winning show from 1977 that encapsulates the inspiration for their founding. Like the central characters, the eponymous Rebekah Nicole Tinsley Klein was stricken with cancer and passed away. Perhaps because of this, the ensemble is able to find a deep well of empathy within their characters that brings some life in the face of death. While this has some of the touches of a freshman outing, rtp does fairly well with this challenging, multi-layered meditation on mortality.
Each of these ‘shadow boxes’ and the people within them (not just the dying) are somewhere along the spectrum of the stages of grief—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Keeping these characters from becoming one-dimensional avatars falls to the cast, and with so many characters and stories they have to act quickly to establish their place on the spectrum and show us a convincing journey to the elusive final stage. Rebekah’s parents Paul and Patricia Tinsley (also the founders) are naturally the most heartbreakingly realistic. Maggie could be a lot of mothers trying to maintain the status quo—even the boring, infuriating parts—in the face of great change and shared dreams that never would, never could, come true. This gives Paul the chance to play an understated, stoic Joe who is forced to play the role of consoler even though it is his death that approaches. Certainly Ludwick’s Beverly is the kind of friend a lot of us should hope for when our number’s up. She’s the kind of gal that brazenly reminds us that if death is the time when we exist only in the memories of others, you better be memorable right to the end. Marx’s transformation to a wheelchair-bound woman is striking in and of itself, and her Felicity is touching even when she’s heaping scorn on her less favored offspring or pathetically making death wait another day so Claire can arrive. With such a diverse range of ages, it’s often inevitable that younger performers can’t captivate to the same level as their senior counterparts, and that’s not an exception here. Director Langston did well with the two-person The Last Five Years recently seen from Another Production Company (my review), but needs to tighten these nine just a bit to keep the performances at the same level. Cristofer’s 35-year-old script has many very modern flourishes and some surprises, but I think—hope?—contemporary audiences don’t really need the semi-preachy ending to sum up the point, as the previous two hours make it clear on their own. Flatly stated morals always sit a little less easily with me than those that gently land in the mind upon reflection.
As an inaugural outing, rtp has chosen an ambitious work both in scope and tone, and is largely rewarded for the effort. Though it may be difficult to tear oneself away from the brightly colored lights that glitter oh-so-enticingly from more festive productions, The Shadow Box is an ultimately rewarding journey with humor and heartache that may make you hug your loved ones a little more tightly than usual this holiday season.
Rating: ★★★
The Shadow Box continues through December 23rd at Raven Theatre, 6157 N. Clark (map), with performances Thursdays thru Saturdays 8pm, Sundays 3:30pm. Tickets are $25, and are available by phone (312-544-0002) or online through their website (check for half-price tickets at Goldstar.com). More information at rebekahtheatreproject.com. (Running time: play 2 hours 15 min with 1 intermission)
artists
cast
Diana Coates (Interviewer), Amanda Hartley (Agnes-Thurs/Fri/Sat), Colby Cameron Holt (Mark), Rob Ibanez (Steve), Carol Ludwick (Beverly), Megan Mackie (Agnes-Sun), Darrelyn Marx (Felicity), James Sparling (Brian), Patricia Tinsley (Maggie), Paul Tinsley (Joe)
behind the scenes
Toma Tavares Langston (director); Sarah Borer (stage manager); Raymond Cleveland (costumes); Mary Aurora Moore (set design)
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