Home  Entertainment Reviews “The Day They Shot John Lennon” by James McLure
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“The Day They Shot John Lennon” by James McLure |
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Written by Barry Gaines
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last updated Wednesday, February 28, 2007, at 13:48:53
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Every generation seems to preserve an unforgettably traumatic date when their world changed. For the oldest there is December 7, 1941. Then comes November 22, 1963. Most recently we experienced September 11, 2001. Add to those dates December 8, 1980, “The Day They Shot John Lennon,” the title of James McLure’s play at the Adobe.
Under Joann Danella’s direction, an accomplished cast portrays nine people drawn to the Dakota where -- the day before -- a deranged fan gunned down Lennon. Rather than a study of the icon or his assassin, this work explores how we deal with incomprehensible loss and numbing tragedy. Humor, insight, and vapid observations mingle in the group mourning. The set is effectively simple. A mural of New York’s Central Park in winter, rendered in foggy blues and grays by set designer Dean Squibb with Jessica Billey, backs a raised platform, a couple of park benches, a lamppost, and a trashcan. Here the characters drift in and out, interacting with each other. There are three teenagers skipping school to deal with their sadness. Jack Quinn plays Kevin, a straightforward youth who amuses himself with his Rubik’s Cube. His sensitive friend Mike, played by James Gonzales, is better able to express his feelings (“John felt pain for all of us. Like Christ.”). Jennifer M. Lloyd is the cute Sally, distraught but angry with her (former) boyfriend Kevin. Their initial hostility gives way to reconciliation. Lori Stewart and Dave McDowell are accomplished as Fran and Brian; neither has gone to work. They carry on yuppie mating rituals without the comforting noise, smoke, and liquor of the single’s bar. We know that they will go off together, but we enjoy the process. The oddest couple is Morrie, an elderly Jew, unaware of the murder or the victim, and Larry, a young Black hustler with boom box rampant. Though their characters are based on stereotypes, Frank DeLillo and Kashu Myles find an uneasy connection. (Larry: “Have you read ‘Invisible Man’ by Ralph Ellison?” Morrie: “No, but I saw the movie with Claude Rains.”) Finally, there are two Vietnam vets who steal for a living. Silvio (Lou Mazzullo) takes care of his unbalanced friend Gately (Richard Boehler). Boehler is terrifying when his character explodes like a landmine at the play’s climax. The result is an enjoyable evening of theater. If You Go WHAT: “The Day They Shot John Lennon” by James McLure WHEN: Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through December 18 WHERE: The Adobe Theater, 9813 Fourth NW HOW MUCH: $12 general public, $10 seniors and students. Call 898-9222 for ticket information
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About Reviewers D.S. Crafts (Website) Composer Daniel Steven Crafts came to New Mexico from San Francisco where he had hosted a classical music radio program on KPFA. His first commission from opera star Jerry Hadley, "The Song & the Slogan" based on texts by Carl Sandburg, was made into a TV program for the PBS network and aired nationally in 2004 and won an Emmy for Best Music. His latest opera La Llorona is a collaboration with novelist Rudolfo Anaya based on his play "The Season of La Llorona." Mr. Crafts is currently working on another commission from Jerry Hadley for a piece about the American Southwest which includes texts by Rudolfo Anaya and V.B. Price. Two CDs of his music, Contemporaries (short, satirical keyboard works) and ARIAS (excerpts from his various operas) have been released on the BACAT label in San Francisco.
David Steinberg David Steinberg has covered state government, the courts, city and county government in Santa Fe for the Albuquerque Journal. He's been an arts writer for the past 20 years, and serves as the book editor, for the Journal. Over the years, he's also acted in plays, sung in choruses and played trumpet.
Jennifer Noyer Jennifer Noyer has been writing dance reviews for the Albuquerque Journal for 17 years, as well as contributing articles for Dance Magazine and other art journals. She trained in dance with Hanya Holm in New York City and Colorado Springs, and studied several dance techniques at the graduate level at the University of Michigan. After teaching dance at Wayne State University she entered and completed a Masters Degree in Humanities there. In New Mexico Ms. Noyer has taught, directed, and choreographed contemporary dance for several years. Her writing on dance includes a monograph accompanying the video of choreographer Bill Evens’ ballet “The Legacy.” An overview of Evans’s world wide career, it was written and published during his tenure at the University of New Mexico. Ms. Noyer’s studies in the humanities, and her studio dance work influence her approach to dance as an integrative art form in the United States.
Barry Gaines Barry Gaines has taught Shakespeare in the University of New Mexico English Department for over twenty-five years and has received two outstanding teaching awards. He has written theater reviews for the Journal since 2000. He has attended theater all over the world including Shakespeare productions in Russia, South Africa, Denmark, and Poland. He has also served as literary advisor for two professional theater companies and written performance reviews for Shakespeare Quarterly. Gaines has taken two years of acting with Paul Ford and appeared in small parts in three plays at the Albuquerque Little Theater. He believes that he is probably a better reviewer than actor.
Joanne Sheehy Hoover Joanne Sheehy Hoover, music critic emeritus of the Albuquerque Journal, has written for NPR, PBS, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Symphony, among others. She has also been a music lecturer for the Smithsonian Associates and a music critic and arts writer for The Washington Post. She was director of the Levine School of Music, one of the country’s largest community music schools, in Washington, D. C. 1980-1993. She and her husband moved to Corrales, New Mexico in July 1993. Also a poet, her fifth collection, “Einstein in New Mexico,” was published in 2002.
Marissa Greenberg Marissa Greenberg is a member of the faculty of the University of New Mexico English Department, where she teaches Shakespeare and early English literature. A prior guest reviewer for the Albuquerque Journal, Greenberg will be reviewing theater while Barry Gaines is out of town. She also composed and edited the program notes for last year’s Albuquerque Shakespeare Festival and has written performance reviews for Shakespeare Bulletin. A graduate of Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, Greenberg has been performing and studying drama for most of her life. She is thrilled to have this opportunity to review for the Journal.
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