There is so much to unpack in a review of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, currently onstage at Theatre Burlington, it’s hard to know where to start.
First, it runs more than three hours with its two intermissions, but every minute is engaging, and at times brilliant and riveting, both for the play’s wit and for the superb performances of its actors.
But it’s not a play for everyone: it challenges the audience to keep up with its verbal swordplay, to distinguish between reality and illusion, and to endure the discomfiture it creates.
The play itself is now more than 60 years old, and clearly sets itself in the time period with references to WWII and prohibition being in the collective memories of the characters, and yet its significance and effect is no less powerful today.
In some regards, the play can be seen as an allegory for the collapse of the American family, and perhaps the collapse of American civility, if not civilization. The main characters, George and Martha, are the first couple of America, the perfect American couple.
George would be the dignified American leader who brings out the best in his fellow Americans and Martha, presumably the perfect supportive wife who brings out the best in her husband. Instead, however, we have a Martha who constantly belittles her husband, and George, who brings out the worst in those around him. They are the perfect couple for a fractured America.
The title, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is doubly symbolic. On the one hand, it references the line from Walt Disney’s Three Little Pigs, “Who’s afraid of the big, bad wolf?” and at the same time directly alludes to Virginia Woolf, a very serious writer who suffered from bi-polar disorder and whose life ended in suicide.
In a nutshell, the references suggest the theme of reality versus illusion, and our turning to illusion when our reality is too difficult to endure.
The play opens in the living room of George and Martha, a set brilliantly devised by Michelle Spanik to use every bit of space the stage at Theatre Burlington offers, with ‘60s kitsch and design including lamps, huge doorbell chimes on the wall, fireplace and bar cart. The American eagle over the door is a tad overstated, and the modern art piece over the fireplace is annoyingly flimsy, but the overall set is effective for the movement the characters require and perfectly reflective of a fairly well-to-do, but lived-in 1960s space.
To begin, George and Martha have returned from a faculty party, hosted by Martha’s father, the president of the university, a Trump-like villain in his own right who “expects loyalty and devotion.”
Setting us up to meet the ideal American couple, the play quickly puts this notion to rest once the dialogue begins and the drinking continues…and goes on and on. The good humour of the first scene, in which George and Martha spar a little, but also share some moments of affection, quickly turns to a verbal battle, Martha besting and belittling George at every possible moment, possibly because she enjoys the audience of their guests, whose names they cannot even remember. A battle between George and Martha ensues, with the game sometimes using and hurting the guests Martha has invited.
Kelly Kimpton’s Martha is near perfect: she owns the stage with her movement, and she exudes the perfect combination of sexy and ugly, particularly in Act 2 when she is costumed in a leopard print top and she is at the height of her sarcasm. Kimpton’s posture and expression reflect the gamut of Martha’s complexity – from playful to mean, from sardonic to sad.
Mark Ellis is very good indeed as the stoic and unpredictable George. Ellis appears to have a twinkle in his eye when George is at his witty best, and there is a control Ellis exerts over George, as if the barbs he inflicts are like the ice cubes he coolly plops in the many, many drinks he pours…until his anger erupts, at least.
Jeffery Giles and Rebecca Durance successfully play the foils of George and Martha, Nick and Honey. Nick and Honey are the modern couple. Nicely outfitted in a skinny ‘60s suit, which looks modern by today’s fashion standard, Nick is a biology professor, representing the science of the future in contrast to George’s History professorship, and Honey is dressed in a funky, plush green mini frock, which seems like it could have been worn in the movie by Sandy Denis.
These are two skilled actors. Giles successfully uses a New England accent, and does well to infuse Nick with a stiffness and controlled anger that his character demands. Rebecca Durance Hine is lovely as the innocent Honey, and there is a sweetness to her expression which appeals to the audience’s sympathy as even she falls victim to the barbed invective which surrounds her.
Deb Dagenais directs this production with a skilled hand at moving people on the stage. Martha’s movement at times showed her to control the room as if she were putting it under a witch’s spell. In addition, the turning about the room by various characters – Nick and George most notably – while they verbally sparred suggested two boxers in a ring or two cats circling each other, readying themselves for a physical encounter. There is one moment when a chair that is barely onstage is used by the director to marginalize and make small the character who occupies it… nicely done!
Unable to attend opening weekend, I saw the play on dress rehearsal night, so I was prepared to forgive glitches that might have been apparent. But what I saw was a performance and production worthy of any audience. Admittedly, there was one prop and there were two set pieces I didn’t like, but the production – from lighting to acting and directing – is really superb. It is a serious play, make no mistake, but of the highest quality one could expect.
Performed at Theatre Burlington, 2311 New St, behind the library
Performance Dates: Fridays, Feb 2, 9 and 16; Saturdays, Feb 3, 10 and 17, at 8 p.m., and Sundays, Feb 4. and 11, at 2 p.m.
Producer: Michelle Spanik
Director: Deb Dagenais
Gregory Flis is a local actor and director who contributes reviews, previews and articles about area theatre for BurlingtonToday.
