Events
It's an oxymoron in Jane Martin's serious comedy about the state, but hopefully not the future, of American theater. Three women, a rich TV star (Deanna Driscoll), an off-Broadway struggling artist (Robin Christ), and an ingénue-wannabe (Aimee Janelle Nelson) sign on for a production of Chekhov's Three Sisters in San Antonio. Throughout their process, from auditions to rehearsals, business keeps trumping, and squelching, art. In the end, like the Prozorov sisters stuck in rural Russia, the trio comes no closer to their dreams. Everything Jane Martin says about current theater is true: commercialism dominates, interpretations mediate texts, few roles for women. But the play is often more a vehicle for commentary, including an intrusive critic in the audience, than an involving story (which is Jane Martin's, a.k.a. John Jory's, ongoing complaint: in today's theater, concepts dominate, not stories). When they don't fuse with Chekhov's sisters, the characters are cardboard. It's a tribute to the 6th@Penn cast that they have some dimensions. At times shrill and heavy-handed (the night I was there the cast played big to a small audience), the production benefits from the three leads, especially Driscoll, who at times takes charge and creates humor out of nothing. The show's look is Our Town minimalism, within which Cashae Monya makes an impressive local debut in several roles.
Worth a try.
Through March 2
When:
- Sundays at 2 p.m.
- Thursdays at 8 p.m.
- Fridays at 8 p.m.
- Saturdays at 8 p.m.