Tag Archives: Caryl Churchill

Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp.

Off-Broadway, Play April 16, 2025 Leave a comment

The announcement of any performance of British playwright Caryl Churchill is cause for excitement.  She has long been a powerful and intriguing voice for gender equality, environmental protection, and sense of self while providing memorable entertainment.  On that score, the premiere program of four of her short works — Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp. — at The Public Theater is a disappointment.  Director James Macdonald and his artistic team have done a masterful job of making the production visually interesting.  But while moments gleam, it never comes together as a cohesive event.

Glass explores the melancholy lives of four decorative items (Japhet Balaban, Adelind Horan, Sathya Sridharan, and Ayana Workman) beyond the confines of their shared mantelpiece. Designer Miriam Buether’s first impactful set is a solid LED jutting out from the darkness and demanding attention.  Though a soulful Workman gives depth to the glass figurine who is the catalyst for the tragic events that unfold, Glass plays out more like an acting class exercise than a full fledged work of theater.

Adelind Horan, Ayana Workman, Sathya Sridharan, and Japhet Balaban; photo by Joan Marcus

Deirdre O’Connell, who won a Tony Award for her solo work in Dana H, pulls off the chillingly violent patter of Kill.  Sitting comfortably on a puffy cloud, a sparkling god of Olympus recounts many evil deeds performed by men — from the prideful Tantalus to the warrior Agamemnon — in the Pantheon’s name.  The repetition would sound like the narration of a five-year-old were the content less bloody.  A knowledge of Greek mythology is essential for following the rapid-fire references, though the essence is clear from O’Connell’s tone and manner.

The first half is closed out with What If If Only, a meditation on love, loss, and the risks of second chances.  For this solemn reflection, Buether provides a still life setting in stark black, white and red.  The sound design of Bray Poor also plays a key role by reinforcing the oppressive atmosphere.  The philosophical theater game is anchored by John Ellison Conlee, who makes the absurd sound completely natural.  

Breaks between these plays are filled by two talented acrobats.  The first is Junru Wang, who performs a balletic work while her hands balance on small stools at the foot of the stage.  For the second, we are treated to what I christened a “juggler-tease” performed with flirtatious glee by Maddox Morfit-Tighe.  Unfortunately some of his choreography was out of the sight lines of the back half of the audience.  Whether these two talented people provide unity, distraction, or a fleeting moment of joy is up to the beholder.

The second half of the program is fully occupied by the more plot-heavy Imp.  Conlee and O’Connell portray Jimmy and Dot, friends close enough to consider themselves brother and sister of different parents.  The affable Jimmy lifts his mood with running and chess.  Slumped in a nearby chair, Dot is ill-temperated and unwell.  She also believes herself to be in possession of a magical imp imprisoned in a wine bottle.  

The rhythm of their lives is altered by the arrival of two newcomers.  First their niece, Niamh, a recent transplant from Ireland stops by.  (Horan is wonderful at delivering Neve’s wildest fears in recognizable Churchill style.)  Then the couch surfing Rob enters their lives (Balaban again).  The younger pair is tossed about, though who’s to say whether their bumpy ride is caused by a supernatural being, the differing attitudes of their hosts, or just life.

It is fitting that the stage on which Glass. Kill. What If If Only. Imp. are performed is framed in chase lights with definite personality (Isabella Byrd lighting design).  With its bitesized ideas and high level of engagement, it’s Caryl Churchill for the TikTok generation.  Churchill’s signature poetic language and extraordinary themes are intact, but there is too little structure.  The Playbill notes encourage us to look beyond conventional narratives, but humans are storytellers with a need for an organizing rope to hold.  The feeling left behind by experiencing these four shorts is more akin to a stroll through a depressive art gallery than witnessing an emotionally fulfilling theatrical work.  Performances continue through May 11th at the Martinson Theater at The Public, 425 Lafayette Street.  Running time is 2:15 with one intermission.  Tickets are available at https://publictheater.org/productions/season/2425/caryl-churchill-plays/ and start at $89.

Light Shining in Buckinghamshire

Off-Broadway, Play, Uncategorized May 8, 2018 Leave a comment

Caryl Churchill is a witty, often brilliant playwright who is sometimes ahead of the curve on intriguing issues.  Her plays delved into gender fluidity, female empowerment, and environmental crisis long before those themes made the covers of popular magazines.  It is therefore particularly frustrating that New York Theater Workshop reached into the back of Churchill’s vault to remount Light Shining in Buckinghamshire, a piece that examines the failures of both church and state during the English Civil War.

The scant story intertwines the lives of a variety of English citizens during the mid 1600.  Oliver Cromwell’s Parliamentarians imprisoned King Charles I, who is still supported by Royalists.  Strict Puritanism has enveloped the Church, though there are whiffs of free consciousness and individualism in the air.  Most of the action takes place off-stage leaving the bulk of the dialogue as passive conversation and exposition.  A chunk of the play reenacts the Putney Debates: an attempt to rework the British constitution.  Some historical knowledge is helpful for following all the verbiage and a brief outline is provided in an addendum to the show’s program.

As staged by the often whimsical Rachel Chavkin and her creative team, this production is particularly rough going.  She employs what has become her trademark of having the actors in the aisles, but mostly keeps them arguing from chairs.  The lack of physical interaction keeps the pace maddeningly slow.  The first act is made almost literally airless by scenic designer Riccardo Hernandez’s decision to lower the ceiling.  Isabella Byrd’s lighting includes faux candlelight for the shadowy Act I and florescence for Act II when illumination seems more in reach.  The soundscape designed by Mikaal Sulaiman is thick and sometimes distorted.  The wardrobe designed by Toni-Leslie James starts off mildly period, then moves to jeans and T-shirts for Act II.  This section also includes anachronistic use of an iPhone, diet soda, and plastic bags.  These may all be nods to today’s struggles with class and power, but the metaphors aren’t clear enough and the props by Noah Mease feel more like empty gestures.

Light Shining in BuckinghamshireNYTW

The cast of LIGHT SHINING IN BUCKINGHAMSHIRE at New York Theatre Workshop, Photo by Joan Marcus

The make up of the cast is as broad and eclectic as possible.  While this is fitting for the work, they are not equally strong performers.  Mikéah Ernest Jennings is the standout, blessed with the most compelling through-line from household servant to preacher serving mankind. It is easy enough to see Matthew Jeffers’ magnetism as well as his dwarfism, though in stretches he speaks too swiftly and softly.  Seasoned actress and activist Vinie Burrows really gets the play going, speaking up from the audience to interrupt a particularly paternalistic sermon.  Evelyn Spahr is also given occasions to show her range, with opportunities to sing as sweetly as a nightingale and mewl Eliza Doolittle style.   But performers Rob Campbell and Gregg Mozgala mostly get lost in waves of sameness. At several points the audience relies on the projected captions to tell them which of their characters is speaking.

Dour, preachy and repetitive, Light Shining in Buckinghamshire was an intriguing experiment written before Caryl Churchill found her true voice and rhythm.  While the challenges of the English Civil War may have been compelling in the mid 1970s with its parallel rise of disenfranchised young people, the lines to the relatable aren’t clearly drawn.  It is also difficult to become emotionally invested in any of these characters.  There is insufficient differentiation between their roles and there is no one we get to know well.  Though not completely lacking artistry, at 2 hours and 40 minutes this production is a test for even the loyalest of Churchill’s fans. The play continues through June 3 at New York Theater Workshop.  Visit https://www.nytw.org/show/light-shining-buckinghamshire/ for tickets and information.