GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE

MAY 1, 1998

Evenings Out

Angels in Ohio

Intimacy of small theater intensifies Kushner's opus

Reviewed by Dawn Leach

Cleveland-If you haven't heard of Angels in America by now, you may be in serious danger of having your queer card revoked. Tony Kushner's powerful two-part drama about life for gay men in the Reagan era gained notoriety from the Broadway production which toured the country, wowing audiences with its flashy and expensive special effects. Boasting both Tony and Pulitzer prizes, Angels in America is a work of genius by a gifted playwright.

Some may remember the feverish, Biblethumping opposition that the Charlotte Repertory Theater faced in 1996 when they staged a local production of the show in Jesse Helms' home state. Local conservatives were so offended by the brief nudity in the performance that county commissioners later removed all arts funding from the county budget.

With rather less controversy, Dobama Theatre opened Cleveland's first indigenous production of Angels in America part one: Millennium Approaches on April 24. Dobama assembled an impressive collection of local talent for the endeavor under the skilled direction of Joel Hammer.

"Some of this play is pretty shocking," said openly gay actor Scott Plate, who plays Prior Walter in the Dobama production.

Plate said there are parts that are simply "vulgar."

The play contains a brief scene of anonymous sex in a park that leaves little to the imagination. Kushner's graphic depiction of Prior's deterioration from AIDS was not gentle either. Prior's brutal experiences with the disease happen onstage in their full horror, with no dressing or disguise.

Kushner used real-life New York lawyer Roy Cohn as one of the characters in the play, brought vividly to life by actor Jerry Zafer. Cohn-who was Sen. Joe McCarthy's righthand man in the 1950s-was a powerful, closeted gay man who ruthlessly destroyed anyone who got in his way. Kushner paints him in a very harsh light, using the real-life Cohn's documented legal misconduct as a basis.

In spite of the flashy spectacle associated with the Broadway production which made the play famous, Angels in America is well-suited to a small, intimate theater like Dobama. In Kushner's notes to directors, he said, "The play benefits from a pared-down style of presentation... which makes for an actor-driven event, as this must be."

Dobama's production of Angels in America is truer to this direction than the Broadway version. Rather than dazzle and distract the audience with fireworks, it draws you into a personal relationship with the people in the story. It certainly has its moments of technologically produced magic, but the most magical part is how the small cast brings alive the characters that people Kushner's story.

It's hard to believe that only eight actors play these 21 characters. There are

many memorable performances. Scott Plate plays Prior Walter like the role was written for him. Laura Stitt makes an amazing transition from the pill-popping wife of a closeted clerk, to a Reagan-era Justice Department flack-man reminiscent of a mobster.

Veteran actor and director Kenn McLaughlin plays the closeted appeals court clerk Joe Pitt with depth and sensitivity, along with a couple other roles you probably won't recognize as the same person. Marji Dodrill, a member of the Actor's Equity Association with more than 30 years of acting under her belt, takes the role of Joe's conservative Mormon mother-and she nails it.

Doug Rossi plays Prior's guilt-ridden lover Louis, and Tony Sias is very real as Louis and Prior's friend and favorite diva, Belize. Jennifer McGowan, who ties with Dodrill for playing the highest number of characters in this production, rounds out the show with four compelling performances, not the least of which is the Angel.

Fast-paced scene changes shift rapidly from location to location, from reality to hallucination to the fantastical. The ensemble of experienced actors vividly creates those places better than any highly-paid Broadway set designer could have.

Set in 1985, the many-faceted story focuses on themes of barriers and defenses being broken down, including the line between dream and reality. Appropriately sub-titled "Millennium Approaches,” it is full of a sense that great, catastrophic change is coming.

Kushner's play suggests that gays will play a critical role in a righting of wrongs in the coming millennium, that "we are a deliberate device placed by God to re-order creation," said Plate.

"If I walked out, would you hate me forever?” Louis (Doug Rossi) asks as he holds his lover. "Yes," answers Prior (Scott Plate).

The play is full of Kushner's subtle sense of humor and commentary. God is portrayed as a flaming Hebrew letter aleph. It is interesting to note that in a play about gay men, many of the incidental male characters are written to be played by women--but no men were cast as female characters.

"I think it's the best American play that's been done in the last 50 years,” said Plate. “It explodes things open and gives a whole new meaning to the word creation.".

Joe Pitt (Kenn McLaughlin in one of three roles) listens as Roy Cohn (Jerry Zafer) runs the world from his phone.

Angels in America: Millennium Approaches will run until May 17 at Dobama Theatre in Cleveland Heights. There will be post-show panel discussions after the May 3 and May 10 performances, and the May 17 performance will be audio described for the visually impaired. Call 216-932-6838 for ticket information.

RIQUE WINSTON (2)