Review - War

Last year, I went to an event where playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins received an award.  During the ceremony, the first scene of his latest play was presented.  I thought the scene was incredible and immediately decided, "I have to see that play!" That play was War and I finally saw it last night at LCT3.  I was supposed to see it a few weeks ago, but my dental trauma made that impossible.  I was bummed to miss my original performance date, but since the tickets at LCT3 are so affordable, I went ahead and bought myself another ticket. The website said I got the last ticket available for the show, but I saw quite a few empty seats scattered throughout the house last night, so you can probably still get in, if you like.

Getting seat neighbor antics out of the way first - this is a bit of a spoiler, but the play begins with someone already on stage. As many of the audience members entered, they would stop, point and talk about the person already on stage.  One weirdo actually got out their camera and took a photo.  The usher ran over and said NO PHOTOS!  But that didn't stop other people from taking photos from their seats.  What is the matter with people?!?!?!  I love pictures as much as anybody (and probably more than some), but even I can restrain myself when I'm in a theater!!  Grrrr.  The gent in front of me (in the front row) was conservatively seven feet tall so no one in the theater could see around him.  Of course he had excellent posture and wouldn't lean down in his seat.  I missed one whole scene because I just couldn't get a view around him.  I heard the people behind me complaining too.  The gals on my right maybe hadn't seen each other for awhile, at least that's what I gather from the TICKLE FIGHT they had during intermission.  A tickle fight.  I should mention these women were older than me.  I kid you not.  And the gal on my left was a fidgety sort, wearing a thousand bracelets.  All I could think of was Vera's line in Auntie Mame:  "what have you got back there, reindeer?!"  She was also abnormally attached to her sippy cup.  I tell you, these crazies are almost enough to keep a person from seeing a show.  Well, no, not really. I won't stay home.  But people ARE annoying.  I guess I should be grateful no one got on their cell phone during the play.  Moving on.

Back to the play.  War is about identity, family, forgiveness, politics, mortality and maybe even a little science.  I think.  There's a lot going on.  It's often funny, often scary, completely audacious and sometimes confusing.  I may have even cringed at points (in a good theatrical way, I mean).  Ultimately, I think I found the play utterly compelling and truly fascinating, not to mention thought-provoking, but I'm not sure I 'liked' it.  I liked many aspects of it, but I feel as if the second act isn't completely satisfying after the incredibly risky first act.  If that makes sense.  I was all jazzed up at intermission and then felt a tad let down by the second act.  But, maybe that's just me.  The tickling ladies next to me loved the second act (or so they exclaimed after the curtain call; obviously they haven't heard of the five-block-rule).

photo credit: Sara Krulwich

The play begins with a woman in a hospital bed and two women keeping vigil.  One is the woman's daughter, who is calling her brother via a cell phone.  She doesn't know who the other woman is.  The other woman, who seemingly doesn't speak English, keeps saying 'sister,' but that doesn't make any sense to the daughter or the son, who tries to take things over when he arrives.  Gradually, we discover that the woman in the hospital bed, Roberta, had a stroke.  The daughter and the son struggle with what to do about their mother, but are continually provoked by the presence of the other woman.  Later added to the mix is the other woman's son - and periodically, throughout the proceedings, we see Roberta, the mother, gliding across the stage, in another dimension of some sort, struggling to make sense of what has happened to her.  (So, parenthetically, it made me laugh that those people taking photos before the show started were taking photos of a body double or a mannequin of some sort.  That will teach them.)

photo credit: Sara Krulwich

The twists and turns of family, of illness, of mortality, of breaking free of established roles, all play a part in War.  I especially enjoyed the idea of Roberta floating through some aspect of time and space, in another dimension because of her stroke, trying to figure out who she is and what has happened.  The way her life comes back to her is wonderfully written, and boldly accompanied by actors playing apes, or 'alphas', who speak in sign language to her in this other dimension.  It's all very hard to explain in a clear way, but I thought the storytelling in the first act was shocking and bold and very theatrical.  We hear about the history of the characters as Roberta tries to piece her life back together, which informs how they behave (often badly) in the present.

photo credit: Erin Baiano

The second act is a little more didactic, in my opinion, with less from Roberta and more from her kids, who clearly have never liked each other (probably informed by how they were treated by Roberta) and have no idea how to cope with each other now that their mother's mortality is in front of them. They also have no idea how to deal with the other woman and her son, who also have claims on their mother and their inheritances. There are some really ugly fights and some characters are hard to look out without repugnance. It's all woven together quite well, but all of the naturalistic speeches in the second act that seemed to say "here's what the play is about" were less interesting to me than the juxtaposition in the first act of reality and the limbo of life and death.  I did appreciate all of the different family dynamics and levels (or not) of forgiveness and I was surprised by the last scene, but I still wasn't as jazzed by the end as I was by the beginning/set up.  Oh well.

Regardless, I was completely engrossed in the story and in the performances, so I guess I shouldn't complain about much.  Charlayne Woodard is amazing as Roberta - so smart and hard, so inquisitive and appealing.  I loved her.  Rachel Nicks and Chris Myers, as Roberta's kids, were also terrific; they weren't afraid to be unlikable, but they also had a great relationship and really seemed like siblings.  Reggie Gowland, as the daughter's white husband, did an excellent job being supportive, horrified and clueless, all at the same time. And Michelle Shay and Austin Durant were excellent as the interlopers who just might be family, though their roles were a little underwritten, in my opinion.  Oh, and Lance Coadie Williams was very good as the sassy day nurse and another character in Roberta's dreamlike world.  He was also very good company when we rode in the elevator together after the show.  :)

This is only the second play I've seen by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and it's clear he has a lot to say.  I will enjoy hearing more from him in the future.  Even if I didn't find War to be completely successful, it's definitely worthy of your time and attention.  It's well-acted, smart, thought-provoking, and very funny in places.  Those types of plays are always worth supporting.