Production Workshop's First Slot production of Tom Stoppard's play "The Invention of Love," a semi-fantastic biography of the poet Alfred Edward Housman, will amuse anyone who has ever read Latin poetry, harbored a secret desire to live in Victorian England or studied at Oxford University in England.
As it happens, I have done all three; therefore, I thoroughly enjoyed the two and a half hours of satire and drama in Production Workshop's tiny theater at T.F. Green Hall. The first act dragged a bit, but the second half grabbed my attention and admiration. Director Kathryn Wallem '07 displayed a talent for recognizing the meaning of the lines and expressing it through the actors. In fact, I left the play with a few interesting philosophical questions spinning around in my head and a new interest to explore Housman.
But few people without a serious interest in classics could sit through the entire first act without dozing off. The speeches are mostly long, tedious and full of esoteric historical and literary references that might be interesting in class but are dull on a Friday night.
The actors' diction further hindered comprehension. The play took place in various locations in England, so the actors all attempted British accents with varying degrees of success. When the actors nailed the accent, the effect was hilarious; when they botched it, the effect was laughable.
James Rutherford '07, who played three different characters in the play, did perhaps the best job speaking like a Brit. His portrayal of the crotchety - and extremely nasal - literary critic Jowett had the audience laughing out loud.
Given the wordy speeches they had to deliver, the actors did an admirable job. The portrayal of Young Housman by Doug Benedicto '08, in particular, set the standard for the show. Although Benedicto had to take a more serious tone than the rest of the actors because of the nature of his role, he effectively used his tone, body language and facial expressions to draw and maintain the attention of the entire audience.
His first outstanding scene comes near the end of the first act, when the old and dying Housman, portrayed by Wade German '07, comes face-to-face with his younger self, then an idealistic student of classics at Oxford. Benedicto infuses his portrayal of the young Housman with a passion and frustration with which almost any college student can relate. German gives an excellent performance as well, but he does not really stand out until the second act.
In fact, the entire play picks up and becomes more interesting after intermission. The long and tiresome academic speeches end, for the most part, and some semblance of a plot develops.
The theme of the young Housman's sexual exploration and struggle was merely hinted at in the first act. In the second act, however, Housman's attraction to his best friend Jackson, played by Elliot Quick '07, grows and becomes more apparent. This creates conflict because Jackson is very obviously heterosexual and because homosexuality was an infraction punishable by law in Victorian England.
In fact, the epitome of the criminalized gay man makes a surprise appearance in the second act. Blanche Case '06 prances on stage as a postmortem Oscar Wilde, who helps the old Housman finally make sense out of his life and poetry. Case's bright performance adds new and much-needed energy to the play.
Also effective in reviving the audience's attention is the increased role of music and other audio effects, produced by Todd Lipcon '07. Even the light design, engineered by Justin Spiegel '08, improves after intermission. To be fair, the costumes of Janet Minichiello '07 and Xephyr Zanzabar were excellent throughout the play and really set the scene in a way the bare set couldn't do.
As the second act drew to an end, I finally began to feel a real connection to the characters, especially to the young Housman. If that connection had begun an hour earlier, I would have recommended the play to everyone I know. As it is, I recommend "The Invention of Love" to anyone who loves long, philosophical conversations and Latin poetry - or who is willing to wait an hour and a half for the action to begin.
