By Ruth Ross
The old adage, "The pen is mightier than the sword," aptly applies to the works of award-winning Montclair-born playwright Christopher Durang, who writes hilarious comedies with a fine sense of modern life’s absurdities, which he skewers with a rapier-sharp wit. He's taken on the Catholic Church, child abuse, our dependence on psychotherapy, even terrorism in works that feature sharp satire, crackling dialogue and off-the-wall comedy.
As is its wont in the month following the excitement of the holidays, the Paper Mill Playhouse eschews its usual musical comedy fare for a "straight" play, in this case Durang's 2013 Tony Award-winning (for Best Play) Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike now onstage in the Millburn theater through February 15.
In a wicked mash-up of Anton Chekhov's classic comedies—specifically, Uncle Vanya, Three Sisters, The Seagull and The Cherry Orchard—Durang has fashioned a modern tale that, while referencing the Chekhovian themes of love and loss, satirizes our quest for eternal youth, our preoccupation with appearance and our infatuation with technology to the detriment of sharing and community.
Named by their community theater enthusiast parents after Chekhov's characters, middle-aged Vanya and his adopted sister Sonia live a quiet single life in the Bucks County, Pennsylvania, stone farm house where they grew up, staying on after having cared for their aging and ailing parents for 15 years. The two spend their days reflecting on their lost chances, arguing whether the grove of nine cherry trees on the property constitutes an orchard and generally bemoaning their lot in life. Their gloomy (albeit peaceful) lives are turned topsy-turvy with the unannounced arrival of their overly dramatic movie star sister Masha (left) with her latest beau, a 29-year-old would-be actor named Spike. Through two acts, along with three other characters, a wild weekend of raucous rivalry and regret ensues. Will Vanya and Sonia ever find happiness? Will Masha sell the house out from under her dependent siblings? And will Spike ever appear fully dressed?
You don't have to be familiar with Chekhov to understand all the in-jokes, for Durang provides much comedic fodder through his absurdist point-of-view. He does this through a series of monologues; each delivered by one of the four main characters. While this provides each actor with a chance to show his/her dramatic chops, most of them go on much too long. Too, as each character emotes, the others are left to stand around and just watch; I found it uncomfortable to watch them.
Mark Nelson (far right) is sympathetic and poignant as the gay Vanya, a man who has never held a job and hides an interest in play writing. He kind of moseys along agreeably until the penultimate scene, where he erupts in a eight-minute tirade about life in the fifties when people wrote letters, watched "The Ed Sullivan Show" and "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriett," and licked stamps. As Sonia, who never tires of reminding everyone that she is adopted, Michelle Pawk (second from left) morphs from dowdy spinster to begowned bombshell ("Sequins are a girl's best friend," she says) before our very eyes; she does a spot-on, and side-splitting imitation of Maggie Smith in "Plaza Suite" that brings down the house.
And Carolyn McCormick (center) as Masha is narcissism on steroids, swans around the morning room lamenting her inability to garner roles like her namesake in Three Sisters instead of the lead in a tacky franchise of "Sexy Killer" films. Returning from the costume party she has inveigled everyone to attend and miffed that her Snow White costume (a la Disney) has made her mistaken for Norma Desmond or a Hummel figurine, she throws the best tantrum by an adult I've seen in a long time. (Photo above by Jerry Dalia)
As Spike, Philippe Bowgen(above, far left) nails the male bimbo persona as he struts around the stage in his underwear. His hilarious monologue re-enacts his audition for a role in "Entourage 2," and he gets big laughs when, told to do a reverse strip-tease (get dressed), he swings his pants around his head and saws his belt between his legs. Extra laughs are provided by Gina Daniels (third from left) as the maid Cassandra, who quotes Greek tragedy and predicts doom for this already gloomy assemblage. Rounding out the sestet is a winsome Jamie Ann Romero (above second from right) as the lovely Nina, niece of the neighbors next door, who wanders over one afternoon, becomes enamored of the glamorous Masha and piques the aging actress's jealousy when Spike takes an inordinate interest in her. Sweetly, it is she who encourages Vanya's artistic endeavor and helps bring an uncomfortable state of affairs to resolution.
Director Don Stephenson has directed this patchwork of a play with spirit and a sure hand. That actors have to stand around and observe as one delivers a long monologue owes more to Durang's inability to let an idea go than to sluggish rhythm. David Korins has designed a bucolic set reminiscent of the houses in Bucks County; Leon Dobkowski's dynamite costumes add to the fun. Mark Bennett's original music and Stephen Terry's lighting design are atmospheric and suggest very well the passage of time. (Above L-R: Pawk, McCormick and Nelson; photo by Matthew Murphy)
Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike may not be top-drawer Durang. While all of the characters are droll, much of the comedy is over the top, and the various parts of the play don't always connect very well. But those who love the theater (especially Chekhov) and great comedic talent won't go wrong spending a warm two hours with this crew at the Paper Mill Playhouse in Millburn.
Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike will be performed at the Paper Mill Playhouse, 22 Brookside Drive, Millburn, through February 15. For information and tickets, call the box office at 973.376.4343 or visit www.papermill.org online.
