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| The cast of "Field Guide." All photos by Joan Marcus |
Theatre
of the Absurd may be an outdated term, but its spirit appears to be alive and
well at Yale Repertory Theatre, which is currently offering the world premiere
of Rude Mechs’ “Field Guide,” a somewhat surreal take on Fyodor Dostoevsky’s
“The Brothers Karamazov.” The one-act evening has the feel of a graduate
seminar on Russian Lit with the students and professor all on LSD. If you’re
looking for linear coherence in your theater-going experience, don’t hold your
breath as you settle in to watch “Field Guide.” However, if you can go with the
flow, or flows, and simply accept, say, a Russian bear doing a stand-up comedy
routine, you’re in for an evening directed by Shawn Sides that will surely
generate a loft of post-curtain conversation.
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| Lowell Bartolomee as the Russian Bear. |
After
the delivery of the usual pre-curtain “Do’s and Don’t’s,” (that seems to have
been recorded by Kermit the Frog), a door opens house right and six characters,
all wearing white parkas, tromp up onto the stage. Five disappear back-stage;
the sixth, Hannah Kenan, who will play Grigory and Katya, stands in front of
the curtain and begins a stand-up routine. If nothing else, this lets you know
that you will be called upon to readjust your expectations, a task you will be
charged with throughout the evening.
Kenan
exits, the curtain rises, and we are into Dostoevsky land, or at least a
reasonable facsimile thereof. The set, compliments of Eric Dyer, consists of
large, tan shapes – mostly rectangular, though there is one shape that looks
like a wedge and another that towers above the rest, a wormlike configuration
that could have escaped from the pages of “Dune.” Over the course of the
evening the set “elements” will often rearrange themselves. Why? That’s open to
interpretation, as is much of “Field Guide.”
With the
initial reveal of the set we meet Dostoevsky’s main characters: there’s Fyodor
(Lowell Bartholomee), the bibulous father, Alyosha (Mari Akita), consumed by
spiritual rapture (the character often levitates), Smerdyakov (Robert S.
Fisher), Fyodor’s bastard son, Ivan (Thomas Graves), the pompous philosopher,
and Dmitri (Lana Lesley), smitten by love for Katya. Their relationships, and
detestation of the father-figure, are often outlined by Kenan, who seems to be
running the seminar.
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| Thomas Graves as Ivan, explain the "Grand Inquisitor" |
Familiarity
with Dostoevsky’s novel is helpful but not mandatory. However, if you’ve ever
puzzled over the justly famous “Grand Inquisitor” chapter, Ivan’s summary
mid-way through the play is perhaps the best, and funniest, exegesis you will
ever come across. There are other set-pieces that are equally enjoyable,
including a scene where Dmitri is trying to cajole Fyodor into giving him his
inheritance – Dmitri rushes from character to character multiple times offering
analyses that would serve well in a Spark Notes entry.
Then
there are moments when you willingly watch but are unsure of what you are
viewing and its import. Chief among these is an interpretive dance sequence
late in the play performed by Akita that is both emotive and evocative but
defies interpretation – perhaps it is Alyosha going through a dark night of the
soul. Your guess is as good as mine. There there’s the aforementioned Russian
bear stand-up sequence – yes, it’s about the difficulty dealing with fathers,
but it lacks focus and just seems to, well, end with a whimper.
Perhaps the
most head-scratching moment is the play’s conclusion, a coup de theatre of sorts that has the Karamazov family sharing what
looks like a “last supper,” followed by – well, why spoil the reveal. And then,
Dmitri appears to deliver a final stand-up routine but, Lesley breaks
character, gives her own name, and, as Lesley, makes a dead-pan,
Sylvia-Plath-like comment about her father’s death. It’s chilling and
discomforting. And then, well, given what now dominates the set you just know
what the Dmitri character will do to end the play.
To a
certain extent, “Field Guide” defies description. There are moments of high
seriousness, followed by moments that could have been lifted from a Marx
Brothers film. Perhaps a close scrutiny of the script will reveal the
connections between the stand-up routines and the Karamazov story-line, perhaps
not. There’s a sense that some of what the audience is offered is done just
for the hell of it. Maybe it would all seem perfectly logical if, when the
audience is seated, each member is offered a tab of LSD. After all, Disney’s
“Fantasia” is purported to be much more enjoyable if you are one toke over the
line. In any event, whatever your interpretation of the goings-on, you will
certainly come away knowing that you have had an experience. What have you experienced?
Well, go out for a post-play glass of Chardonnay and discuss.
“Field
Guide” runs through February 17. For tickets or more information call
203-432-1234 or go to www.yalerep.org
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