September 16-22, 2004

theater

Un-American

by David Anthony Fox

Remember when the 1950s meant prosperity and poodle skirts? Not anymore. Our theater has changed course in the ensuing years, and now we identify that first post-WWII decade with some of the grimmest chapters in America's past. Particularly since Tony Kushner's Angels in America — a work in whose debt and shadow Lantern Theater's Un-American lies — we think of the '50s as a time of government and bigotry run amok.

In Angels, the plot point was the Rosenbergs. In Un-American, it's the House Un-American Activities Committee and its grilling of the Hollywood Ten, a group of film-industry veterans whose careers were very nearly ruined by (largely unfounded) accusations of communist ties.

It's a disgraceful piece of history that has lost none of its power over time.

In fact, the sections of Un-American that work best are nearly verbatim speeches of actual testimony. Toward the end of the first act comes a funny moment in which Hollywood Ten actress Jody Gilbert (nicely played by Sally Mercer) slyly dithers for so long that the committee has no idea what to do. This piece is followed by a very moving sequence on Langston Hughes, whose testimony is both a triumph and (later) a capitulation. Hughes is played by Frank X in a performance of extraordinary sensitivity and depth. X is by turns dignified, funny and shattered, and I doubt you'll see a finer a piece of acting anywhere this season.

Elsewhere, when Un-American's own writers (Justin Coffin, Amy Gorbey, Caryn Hunt) shape the play, the going is rockier. HUAC's prominent players are flattened into cardboard saints and villains. As seen here, Roy Cohn is a dreary little suit, nothing like the fabulously evil — but also witty and charming — character that Kushner made of him.

And (again, because Un-American looks to Kushner as a model) the writers must add phantasmagorical layers of American iconography. This involves unfunny parodies of TV commercials, as well as a grossly exaggerated portrayal of a suburban couple. We've seen all this many times before, and in any case it sheds no light on the play's central theme.

Director Michael Brophy does what he can with scenic resources too constrained to realize the play's pretentious scope. The ensemble cast is fine. (In addition to Mercer and X, they include Charles McMahon, Paul Nolan, Sara Pauley and Patrick Doran.)

Ultimately, Un-American offers no real insights into a topic that has been well-examined by our theater. On the other hand, for 10 minutes of some of the finest acting you'll see anywhere, check out the sovereign Mr. X.

UN-AMERICAN Through Oct. 3, Lantern Theater Company at St. Stephen's Theater, 10th and Ludlow sts., 215-829-9002