Review: Sextet by Tommy Smith. Directed by Roger Benington. With John Abramson, Brandon J. Simmons, Chris Macdonald, Hannah Victoria Franklin, Samantha Leeds, Heather Persinger, James James, Steven Ackley, Tony Palmer. Now through November 15 at Washington Ensemble Theatre.
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| Hannah Victoria Franklin and Chris Mcdonald. Photo by Laurie Clark Photography. |
You’ll have to excuse me, but I’m a bit burnt out. Since September 9th, I’ve seen SIXTEEN stage productions, (yeah, I gasped just now, writing that) and while none of them have been BAD, the majority of them have been a bit bland and middle of the road. I’ve been jonesin’ for some meaty, juicy theater with artistic merit and I’ve been sorely disappointed for awhile and starting to despair that it just wasn’t meant to be. I’m very, very, very pleased to report that my dry spell has ended. The always interesting, always innovative, always challenging Washington Ensemble Theatre made me a very happy camper last Friday night at the opening of their new production, Sextet. The world premiere of Tommy Smith’s new play is a cause for celebration. Sextet is a intricate puzzle box of a play, a dazzling choreographed, immaculately designed, and passionately acted new work of art. Mr Smith has created a mesmerizing roundelay of three inter cutting stories, meticulously constructed and layered with pathos and humor and heartache and artistic integrity. At a taut 80 minutes, I only wish it had been longer…I wasn’t ready to leave the world that WET had created and I walked home in a bit of swoon. Like a passionate kiss, experiencing a terrific production of an exciting new play can leave you heady with the excitement of new found love.
Yes, I really liked it.
Sextet is a play about three famous composers and their complicated love/sex lives. Peter Tchaikovsky, Arnold Schoenberg and Carlo Gesualdo all achieved fame for their music, each in his own era, but have little else in common save their tendency to get involved in tragic love triangles. Tchaikovsky struggled with his homosexuality, married a much younger woman but had relationships with other men, including his own (adult) nephew. The twentieth century composer, Arnold Schoenberg lost his wife Matilde to a painter but was persuaded to return to the composer for the sake of the children; the painter subsequently committed suicide. And, the case of Carlo Gesualdo was the most shocking and violent of all; in 1590 the famed madrigal composer murdered his wife and her lover after catching the couple in the act. Gesualdo was a nobleman and was not prosecuted; he remarried and lived another 23 years.
Unlike many playwrights, Tommy Smith is not afraid to place multiple characters on stage at the same time, from different timelines and interweave complicated narratives. Characters in the Tchaikovsky plotline will mimic the words and actions of characters in the Schoenberg and Gesualdo plotlines, or even contrast with the the other stories. At times, all nine actors are on stage and both the writing and the direction is assured enough to guarantee that the audience is able to focus on the appropriate characters and plots at the appropriate time, or encompass all the action on the stage when necessary. It all works due to the strong plotting and dialogue by Mr Smith and the carefully detailed direction of Roger Bennington. Every movement is carefully but artistically planned out and never feels forced or artificial and the work frequently feels like a choreographed ballet of passionate moments and moods. It is probably the strongest and bravest job of directing I’ve seen on a Seattle stage and a credit to Mr Bennington.
Mr Bennington and the designers are also responsible for the unique setting of the play. The curtain opens to reveal a simple three walled set of classically paneled walls with three hidden doors in the backstage wall. But the most striking thing about this simple setting is the fact that it sits in three inch pool of water and the actors play the entire show with wet feet, and eventually wet bodies as the mood intensifies. It’s a bit shocking at first and maybe a little distracting, (I kept thinking of the poor actors getting cold and wet…the unpleasant sensation of being perpetually damp and clammy.) But the mood of the show is enhanced by the SOUNDS generated by the splashing of the actors as they move through the water and the beautiful wavering light images created by the light bouncing and reflecting off the water, gently shimmering on the walls of the set. It created a mood and a sensation of being in a dreamworld of water and light and pain and lust and agony and ecstasy. The design and execution of the set, lighting, sound and costumes, all in a careful greyish/blue color scheme is haunting, beautiful and artistry of the highest calibre and credit must be given to the very professional talents of Andrea Bryn Bush, (set); Andrew D. Smith, (lights); Tito Ramsey and Skylar Burger, (sound); Pete Rush, (costumes) and Clare Strasser, (props). Amazing award worthy work from the entire team and staff.
WET is largely an actor’s ensemble and the actors on stage for “Sextet” represented the company at its best. All gave powerful, intuitive performances and each had their moments to shine on stage. In the three “lead” roles, (though, in reality, this is very much an ensemble piece; every character is relatively equal in importance) , John Abramson as Tchaikovsky, Brandon J. Simmons as Schoenberg and Chris Macdonald as Gesauldo give impassioned but centered performances as the men in the center of the three love triangles, Abramson shining as the tortured closeted Russian, Simmons coolly detached and icy as the most “modern” of the three, and Macdonald a very appealing and sexy, but alternately cruel and despairing Italian murderer. They were equally matched by the three women in their lives: WET ensemble member Hannah Victoria Franklin as the cuckolding wife of the Italian, statuesquely regal and a bit cruel in her infidelity; Heather Persinger as the middle class and slightly frumpy wife of Schoenberg, vaguely committed to her indiscretions; and Samantha Leeds as the baby voiced and petulantly deluded “beard” to the tormented Tchaikovsky. And while the focus of the play centers on the celebrity composers, the three “other” men in the triangles are also vital components in the story and James James, Steven Ackley and Tony Palmer were powerful support as the men behind the scenes who propel the three stories. All nine actors give detailed but impassioned performances and all must be commended for the quality of the work AND for the difficult conditions of acting in a pool of water!
Who’s this play for? Everyone who enjoys passionate, original and artistic theater. Classical music lovers. Anyone who craves brave, original theater. It’s a must see theater event.
– Michael Strangeways
