There’s no silver lining without a cloud in these Irish plays

The year brought The Southwest Irish Theater Festival, propelled by our own Dubliner, teacher, actor and dialect coach Alan Hudson. First was Martin McDonagh’s 1996 play “The Cripple of Inishmaan” at the Vortex. Director Marty Epstein led his cast of nine to savor the eccentricities of their characters. My favorites were Ray Orley as Johnnypateenmike and Jean Effron as his foul-mouthed, 90-year-old Mammy; they were exuberant together.

Mother Road Theatre Company’s contribution was Conor McPherson’s “The Seafarer” (2006), a Faustian story of infernal temptation marinated in Irish whiskey. The acting was strong; I especially liked Vic Browder’s energy in his angry portrayal of Nicky and Shangreaux Lagrave’s dim but sensitive Ivan. Peter Shea Kierst’s Richard was imperious, vulgar, and comical. Gil Lazier directed effectively.

James Wagner and Jacqueline Reid appeared in the FUSION Theatre Company’s production of “Other Desert Cities” this year. (Courtesy of dennis gromelski)

A very different tone was evident in “Stones in his Pockets” by Marie Jones at Aux Dog Theatre where Micah Linford and Ed Chavez played over a dozen characters under the inventive direction of Terry S. Davis. (Similar comedy came from Adam Kidd and Patrick Ross who portray 18 characters in “Tuna Does Vegas,” the Christmas entertainment at The Vortex.)

Lennox Robinson’s “Is Life Worth Living” (1933) at The Adobe, directed by Brian Hansen, was the third Irish play to feature a film or theatrical company causing consternation among the locals. The plays suggest the insularity of the Irish.

I was not able to see Marina Carr’s “Woman and Scarecrow” at the Desert Rose, but I believe that the Southwest Irish Theater Festival was a success. It appears in these Irish plays that no silver lining is without a cloud, and the milk of human kindness can be a bit off. Yet despite the abundance of alcohol, profanity, and violence, redemption is possible — if just beyond reach.

It is the most famous Irish-American playwright, however, whose works were among the best of the year. The tortured genius of Eugene O’Neill gave us “A Moon for the Misbegotten” and “Long Day’s Journey into Night” — both brilliantly produced.

O’Neill authority Jim Cady directed his cast to superb performances in “Moon,” an exceptionally difficult and tortured play. Lorri Oliver, Blake Driver, Eliot Stenzel, Scott Sharot and Vernon Poitras were all excellent. Director Cady expressed in his program note — and his direction — the heart of the play: “Moon” is a love story, “with each character only wanting the best possible world for the other in spite of the odds — a world where the greatest of all forms of love is forgiveness.”

If anything, the Vortex production of “Long Day’s Journey into Night” was even better, because the play is tighter and more daring than “Moon.” Under the loving and respectful direction of David Richard Jones, the superbly talented and balanced cast gave uniformly memorable performances.

O’Neill called “Long Day’s Journey” “this play of old sorrow, written in tears and blood” and prohibited its publication or performance until after his death. Paul Ford and Debi Kierst presented standout performances as the playwright’s father and mother in this painful autobiographical study. This was theater at its best.

Jim Cady, who directed “Moon,” also wrote and performed a one-man show, “The Unauthorized Afterlife of Eugene O’Neill.” Cady captured the complexity and misery of this giant of 20th-century drama.

Such solo performances break down the “fourth wall” that separates actor from audience.

There are two other one-person shows I want to mention because of their honesty and impact. Albuquerque resident Susan Sandager has, over many years, fashioned a script about the life and dedication of Corrie ten Boom, the Dutch Christian who hid and assisted hundreds of Jews avoid capture by the Nazis. Although she has no formal training in playwriting or acting, Sandager portrays ten Boom at the end of her life in “Corrie Remembers: The True Story of Corrie ten Boom” under the direction of Russell Maynor. She has performed this moving tribute all over the world. I recommend it.

Tom Schuch performed a strong one-man show about a German Jew who escaped the Nazis and contributed momentously to his adopted country, the U.S.A. Schuch is excellent in “Einstein: A Stage Portrait” by Willard Simms. Schuch presents an approachable and likeable Einstein in his 60s and demonstrates why Time Magazine named Albert Einstein “The Person of the (20th) Century.”

FUSION Theatre Company continued bringing Broadway hits to Albuquerque. I especially enjoyed “Other Desert Cities” by Jon Robin Baitz. Gil Lazier directed FUSION regulars Jacqueline Reid, Laurie Thomas, Paul Blott and Joanne Camp plus newcomer James Louis Wagner in this cleverly constructed drama about a California family with its triumphs and tensions, its successes and secrets. Earlier, I chided Mother Road Company for leaving Gil Lazier’s name off of their program; then I left his name out of my review. Sorry.

Tricklock lives! I found “Little Red,” Mars Mráz’s treatment of “Little Red Riding Hood,” to be both powerful and flawed, the best thing I had seen from Tricklock Company in quite a while. It provided an absorbing evening in the new Tricklock Performance Laboratory.

I also enjoyed the University of New Mexico Department of Theatre and Dance presentation of Mary Zimmerman’s “Metamorphoses” at its Experimental Theatre. The play was imaginatively staged and directed by theater professor Joe Alberti who involved scores of students in all aspects of the production. Michael Hidalgo’s unconventional lighting design drove the play forward and connected the various Ovidian myths.

A week after I saw UNM’s production, I was at Chicago’s Lookingglass Theatre where the play opened 10 years earlier. I watched a loving recreation of the play’s premiere and liked the UNM version better.

The plays of Shakespeare, as many of you know, have a special place in my heart. The four I saw this year varied greatly in quality. Of Victoria Liberatori’s direction of “Macbeth” at the Aux Dog, the less said the better.

The Third Annual Vortex Summer Shakespeare Festival (“Will Power 3″) featured three dramas. Brian Hansen’s production of “Twelfth Night” struck me as undisciplined and zany (good and bad). Acting honors went to Caitlin Aase and Ned Record as Viola and Orsino. Not unexpectedly, Charles Fisher as Malvolio comically made the most of each of his character’s appearances and almost stole the show.

Paul Ford directed “The Winter’s Tale,” one of William Shakespeare’s last plays. It is both magic and mythic, a bold amalgam of deep tragedy and delightful romance. Ford’s insightful direction and the cast’s fine acting tamed the complex plot and stark changes in mood and tone. Arlette Morgan as Queen Hermione and Ed Chavez as Autolycus were my favorites.

Most compelling was the difficult history play “Richard III” directed by Peter Shea Kierst. Kierst’s script eliminated, combined, and reassigned characters and speeches and devised other changes to make the play fully understandable. His large cast was accomplished, but the play belonged to Chad Brummett in the title role. Brummett’s Richard negotiated the stage on crutches with skillful abandon. His Richard was frighteningly real: charming, imperious, duplicitous, always with his frown on the crown.

The best production/performances of the year? My vote goes to “Death of a Salesman,” written by Arthur Miller and directed by James Cady. I saw this classic American tragedy of the common man at the Vortex on opening night and everything seemed perfect: John Van der Meer’s multilevel set, Jose Castro’s costumes, John P. Aspholm’s lighting, and all the acting. I felt that I was in the presence of greatness.

The two principal actors were remarkable. As Linda, Lorri Oliver conveyed her character’s intricate interlace of loyal enabler and loving protector. As Willy, Philip J. Shortell was exceptional. Every nuance seemed right. I had seen him act before, but nothing prepared me for his performance. I congratulated him after the play, saying, “I didn’t know you had it in you.” He replied, “Neither did I.”