Three more entries into my Seclusion Smörgåsbord series. A Berlin theater company’s production of a Tony winning playwright. A children’s show in the style of microscopic live cinema-theatre. And the first ever online presentation of a series at the Tank called “Puppet Spread.”
Bella Figura (Schaubühne, Berlin)
This theater company from Berlin presented History of Violence last fall at St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn. At the end of my review I noted that I would not miss an opportunity to see their work again given the high quality and originality on stage. How lucky then to find they are streaming their repertoire with occasional productions featuring English subtitles.
Bella Figura is a play by French playwright Yazmina Reza. She is the only woman to have won two Best Play Tony Awards for Art and God of Carnage. The director was Thomas Ostermeier who helmed History of Violence. My expectations were high and they were surpassed. Andrea (Nina Hoss) and Boris (Mark Waschke) are driving in a car to dinner. He’s married and this affair has been going on for four years. They flirt, bicker and pull up to a restaurant for dinner.
An accident occurs in the parking lot. A friend of Boris’ wife is involved. She sizes up the situation quickly. Eric (Renato Schuch) and Françoise (Stephanie Eidt) are taking his mother (Lore Stefanek) out for a birthday dinner. A series of scenes follow where tensions mount, booze flows, pills are popped, financial distress is shared and character assassinations gush profusely. These people may be trying to display a bella figura, or fine appearance, but the entertaining cracks are too big to hide.
Mr. Ostermeier’s direction is once again terrific. The actors are uniformly excellent as relationships attract, repel and swirl around in a fog of delicious angst. (Mr. Schuch was especially memorable in a very different role in History of Violence.) The two leads, Ms. Hoss and Mr. Waschke, inhabit these characterizations so thoroughly that every hairpin turn is ridiculous and surprising while maintaining just enough balance with realism and believability.
Schaubühne is streaming many plays each week (refer to the online replacement schedule). The next one which includes English subtitles is Returning to Reims by this same director. This production can be accessed through their website on May 27, 2020 between 12:30 pm est through 6:00 for one day only.
theaterreviewsfrommyseat/historyofviolence
Not Outside (La Mama Kids)
La Mama Kids online is presenting a weekly children’s program through the end of the summer. This week’s entry was Not Outside, a twenty minute show in the style of microscopic live cinema-theatre by Nekaa Lab. A sheep is staring at a television and says, “I’m not going outside today.” This sheep loves adventure but is very bored. The connection to our stay at home coronavirus situation is obvious and timely.
This sheep decides to enter the television and go on an adventure of their own imagination. Household objects become a boat. Clever images suggest penguins on an iceberg. The message for children is to try to make live cinema theater yourselves. “Trippy” is the word I wrote down to describe the mood of this piece. Not Outside was an interesting combination of psychedelic, creepy, creative and cute.
La Mama Kids shows stream every Thursday afternoon at 4:00 pm est. Not Outside is still available for viewing.
Puppet Spread (The Tank)
For their first ever online show “in a box,” three hosts presented an assortment of puppet works. Their theme for this group was to answer the question, “What is essential to you?” These “Ladies of Mischief” use a variety show format with banter. A puppet “singer” performs musical interludes and takes requests from the viewing audience.
The finest piece was “Supernatural” from Atlanta’s Sociedad Especial. Manipulated toilet paper rolls and use of blacklights created fantastic and colorful puppets. The tale was loosely based on the Bible story of 2 Kings 4-17. A mother reached out to God to help her save her children. This selection was first and set the bar high. What followed was a very mixed bag.
My second favorite puppetry performance was called “Companion.” This one had a nice blend of melancholy and hopefulness. A person in mourning has his life changed when a new puppy arrives in a box to be loved. Jenny Hann developed a nice mood to showcase her emotional storyline.
I have to point out that this stream lasted a long ninety minutes. More than half of the time seemed to be variety show banter and musical sidetracks of significantly decreasing effectiveness. A much tighter format is advised. Perhaps I am the wrong age group for this material. As I review theater for young audiences regularly, I don’t think so.
The Tank is streaming many events each week to give developing artists opportunities to create and present their works during this period of shuttered theaters.