Cast up to challenge of Mamet's drawing-room comedy
By JAMES D. WATTS JR. World Scene Writer
1/19/2006
The name David Mamet usually conjures up thoughts of wily con men, cut-throat real estate salesmen, petty criminals -- desperate characters in tight situations, who talk out their problems in dialogue that mixes poetry and profanity.
Guy stuff, in other words.
Then there's "Boston Marriage."
"Certainly Mamet is a 'man's writer' in a lot of ways," said Devin Meadows, who is directing Heller Theatre's production of "Boston Marriage," which opens this Thursday.
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Kristi Bush (left), Kaycee Johnson and Monica Barczak appear in Heller Theatre's "Boston Marriage."
ROBERT S. CROSS / Tulsa World
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"That's why this is such a surprising play," he said. "For one thing, there's no men -- it's an all-female cast. But I think the thing that people are going to find most surprising and different about 'Boston Marriage' is how funny this play is."
There's always been a streak of sardonic humor in Mamet's work, which includes plays such as the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Glengarry Glen Ross," "Speed-the-Plow" and "The Cryptogram" to films like "House of Games" and "The Spanish Prisoner."
But never before has Mamet allowed that sense of humor as full a rein as he does in "Boston Marriage."
"It's literally a drawing room comedy," Meadows said. "The only description of the setting is 'A drawing room.' So it could be any drawing room, almost any place or time."
In that drawing room is Anna, portrayed by Kristi Bush, who is waiting for Claire (Monica Barczak). Anna is pleased to announce she has secured the affections -- and access to the pocketbook -- of a wealthy man, who has presented her with the necklace she so ostentatiously wears.
Claire, however, is more interested in enlisting Anna's help in a scheme of her own. Claire has fallen in love with a young woman, and wants to use Anna's house for an assignation.
Anna is quite aggrieved at this request -- mainly for what it implies about the state of her relationship with Claire, the "Boston marriage" of the title, which was a Victorian-era euphemism for a long-term relationship between two women.
"The driving idea is that these two women are a perfect match for each other," Meadows said. "So the play is really about their solidifying their relationship, although to do that they have to go through a lot of very quick and witty dialogue."
That, and a couple of plot twists and masquerades that would not be out of place in an Oscar Wilde farce.
Rounding out the cast is Kaycee Johnson as Anna's maid, Catherine, who has troubles of her own -- not the least of which is an employer that never can remember her name.
"It's really a hilarious play, but the comedy isn't easy -- it's not set-up and punch line, set-up and punch line," Meadows said. "The comedy comes out of the character and to an even greater degree, the language.
"There's a very distinct rhythm to Mamet's dialogue, and it's essential to get that right, otherwise you can destroy the whole fabric of the play," he said. "And as it typical of Mamet, sometimes all the characters are saying is a sequence of 'Yes, yes, no, um,' and it has to be just so.
"It's a huge undertaking for the cast, both the size of this script and the demands it contains, and I feel very lucky to have the cast I do," Meadows said. "Everyone has risen to the challenge."
James D. Watts Jr. 581-8478
james.watts@tulsaworld.com
theater
“BOSTON MARRIAGE”
When
8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and Jan. 26-28, 2 p.m. Sunday
Where
Heller Theatre, 5328. S. Wheeling Ave.
Tickets
$8 adults, $6 seniors and students, available by calling 746-5065
This site sponsored by Heller Theatre Council.
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