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Happy Birthday Wanda June
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Written by Kurt Vonnegut
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Directed by Ellen Dempsey
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Produced by American Century Theater
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Reviewed by Debbie Minter Jackson
Who knew that Kurt Vonnegut had enough drama up the same sleeve that created such a seminal work as Slaughterhouse Five, to create a funny and poignant play? Or that the issues raised in his inaugural attempt at playwriting would still be relevant and piercingly accurate almost forty years after its opening? American Century Theater’s enjoyable rendition of Happy Birthday, Wanda June does an excellent job exploring Vonnegut’s ideas about integrity, social justice, duty and the American way. The superb cast effectively conveys the playwright’s sarcasm and provocative wit.
Vonnegut‘s powerful ideas about honor and justice occasionally overpower the script, as if he’s writing so furiously that the medium needs time to catch up with him. Still, a few uneven passages are a small price to enjoy the depth and maniacal energy of this iconoclastic writer renown for his brutally honest questions, and sometimes irrelevant stabs, at the country’s dearest principles.
In true Vonnegut fashion, the actual heart of the play almost defies description. On the surface, a woman who tries to go on with her life when her husband disappears for eight years while on an excursion in the Amazon rain forest is jolted by his abrupt return. Vonnegut evokes the influence of Greek tragedy with a wife named Penelope, who also shares the predicament of being surrounded by a phalanx of suitors that her Odysseus-like husband has to fend off upon his heroic return.
Although ostensibly Penelope is moving on with her life by entertaining suitors, considering marriage proposals, and raising her son as a single Mom, in tribute to her husband she has kept the house exactly as he left it. The house is a reflection of her being stuck in the past, in stasis, while also showcasing her husband’s big-game hunting skills. The mounted animal heads on the walls indicate the brute strength and manliness of the superior hunter, Harold Ryan, the prodigal warrior. In true Vonnegut fashion, however, there is also an ulterior underlying message – the mountings serve as a constant reminder that we are all part of the animal kingdom and can be shot down and displayed for sport on a whim. Death is the ultimate equal opportunity enforcer.
Vonnegut presents all aspects of Death, from the untimely accidental death of a sweet child who died before she could celebrate her birthday (Wanda June) to the murder and maiming of thousands (due to the hydrogen bomb dropped on Nagasaki). Once they’ve crossed over, there is little to distinguish the evil despots, tyrants, and murderers from the innocent victims of atrocities and slaughter–all are transformed into milquetoast souls eager to play shuffle board in the great beyond. Deceased characters provide their ruminations from the hereafter directly to the audience.
It takes a brood of highly accomplished actors to pull off all the strange, yet thought-provoking messages that Vonnegut has in store and here is where the production truly shines with top-notch performances. Kari Ginsburg as Penelope shows the perfect blend of coming into her own new age woman with a foot still perched precariously back in the old subservient ways when confronted by her husband’s brutish and sexist overtures. Ginsburg jumps between displays of strength and vulnerability as the tables turn all around her while also being the overprotective loving mother. William Aitken delves into the many layers of her husband Harold who sinks into increasing depths of animus and darkness—another excellent performance.
The trio of supporting characters round out the ensemble with surprisingly effectiveness. Joe Cronin as Loose Leaf is on the mark portraying the wandering and haunted soul affected by his military actions of being a good soldier and “just following orders.” His character is timeless and is up-to—the minute relevant considering today’s war tribunals The two potential love interests are so well cast they exclude aspects of their characters effortlessly. Brian Razzino is the mousey vacuum cleaner salesman, Herb, who worships the ground of the returned warrior hero. Like a second stringer in awe of the winning quarterback in high school, Herb has more of a fixation on Harold than his own potential love-interest, reticent in showing affection, intimacy or even a mild physical embrace. Vonnegut might be playfully hinting at the character’s questionable orientation, but Razzino embodies the ultimate star-struck fan.
Finally, Brian Crane gives a stellar performance as Dr. Norbert Woodly. His peace-sign loving character is a funny caricature at first, but as Vonnegut burrows through the layers, Crane is right with him, down to the last hellish death-defying scenes that define the absolute core essence of the two men—the fearless, old-school warrior versus the pansy-light, foppish, yet tantalizingly fresh “new hero.” Vonnegut sets up the tense moments superbly, and Dempsey’s quick-pace directing sparkles, but it’s up to the actors to keep us all spellbound wondering who has the depth and self-assurance to survive this breath-taking roulette, and they do.
The design elements work well effectively using the space. The lighting by AnnMarie Castrigno plays a significant role in delineating the various ancillary characters that Vonnegut uses to portray the heavenly realm—from the all too sweet Wanda June, to the chain smoking and drinking past her prime Mildred, to the Stalin-like “Beast of Yugoslavia.” Vonnegut’s script calls for creative thinking, and the production delivers the goods. Costume designer Rip Claassen’s go-go attire including Penelope’s high pitched Goldie Hawn-looking boots and Jake Null’s wailing sounds of Jimi Hendrix smack us back into the Age of Aquarius hunting for our own hidden stash of love beads and “Love not War” buttons.
The American Century Theater often has the thankless job of resuscitating historical, seldom produced scripts “for our own good” (sometimes unwittingly demonstrating why some of them are stuck in the archives). This Vonnegut script, on the other hand, successfully facilitates their raison d’etre, allowing ACT to accomplish its mission “to promote 20th century theater as a vital part of our cultural dialogue.” Happy Birthday, Wanda June provides a rare glimpse into a gifted writer tackling social issues in an engaging theatrical context. It will be long time before we have this kind of a perfect alignment again.
Running Time: 2:15 (one intermission).
When: Thru March 29th. Thursday - Saturday at 8 p.m, Saturday & Sunday matinees at 2:30 p.m.
Where: Gunston Arts Center (Theater II), 2700 South Lang Street, Arlington, VA.
Tickets: $26-29. Call (703) 998-4555 or order through the website.
Tags:
american century
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