VANYA AND SONIA AND MASHA AND SPIKE. Directed by Bobby Heaney, starring Michael Richard, Bo Petersen, Louise Saint-Claire, Kensiwe Tshabalala, Richard Gau and Emilie Owen. At Theatre on the Bay, Tuesdays to Saturdays at 8pm until September 6. STEYN DU TOIT reviews.
ABSURDISM meets sibling rivalry and Chekhovian references in Christopher Durang’s broadway hit. Directed by Bobby Heaney and chock-a-block full of wit, cultural references and gloomy humour, the production makes its Cape Town debut following popular runs in Grahamstown and Johannesburg.
Taking place against Jannie Swanepoel’s beautifully rustic set, we find a pair of unmarried, middle-aged siblings, Vanya (Richard) and Sonia (Petersen), having breakfast coffee in their Pennsylvanian country house’s mo(u)rning room. The children of a pair of amateur theatre enthusiasts, their names (references to Anton Chekhov’s plays) now appear to have also become their fate.
Dressed in pajamas while scouting the lake outside their house for visiting herons (a sign of good luck), we learn that he’s gay, she’s adopted, that they’re both unemployed and that they live in a house paid for by their actress sister, Masha (Saint-Claire). “I dreamt that I was 52 and not married,” Sonia laments before throwing a cup of coffee against a wall. “Where you dreaming in the documentary form?” a poised Vanya replies in an unruffled tone.
After enduring several melodramatic psychic warnings from their Caribbean housekeeper, Cassandra (Tshabalala) – a sassy, prophesizing sendup of her Greek mythology namesake – about someone or something named “Hootie Pie”, Masha is then seen arriving for a visit. From the moment she ceremoniously makes her grand appearance, however, it becomes clear that this won’t be a reunion involving the singing of Kumbaya around the campfire.
A five-time divorcee and millionaire thanks to a popular film franchise in which she plays a nymphomaniac serial killer, Masha also did not arrive alone. Strutting into the room behind her is Spike (Gau), a meat-headed, ridiculously good looking 20-something toy boy. Flexing his abs and slow-running around the house in underwear, he brags that, as an actor, his greatest achievement thus far was “almost being cast in Entourage 2.”
The arrival of aspiring actress Nina (Owen) and a themed costume party they'll all attend that evening, forms the backbone of this production that’s best seen without any more knowledge of the plot. A play that often avoids cooking according to the recipe, it’s an experience where Snow White meets postage stamps, where 19th Century Russia meets The Beatles and where nostalgia meets unpunctuated text messaging.
The end result is one of the most enjoyable plays you'll get to see in Cape Town this year.
While the script and plot heavily draws on what is considered Chekhov’s four major works – Uncle Vanya, The Three Sisters, The Cherry Orchard and The Seagull– one does not need to be familiar with them in order to plunge into the delight that is Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. Those who do, however, will find themselves knowingly titter at the bickering over whether 10 cherry trees constitutes an actual orchard or not, hearing Sonia bemoaningly refer to herself as a wild turkey, and witnessing Nina sweetly asking Vanya, “May I call you Uncle Vanya?”
A production that walked away with several Best Play awards in the US last year (Drama Desk, Tony and New York Drama Critics' Circle ceremonies), this piece demands execution by a top-grade cast. After first seeing this production at the National Arts Festival it’s a pleasure to see how settled into their characters the actors have grown.
So too is the visible bond and camaraderie they've developed as an ensemble. Their combined execution is lyrical, rhythmic and feels perfectly timed.
While the younger cast members dive headfirst into their purposely exaggerated characters, it is the three established performers that elevates Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike to must-see status.
After a persuasive rendition of painter Mark Rothko in Steven Stead’s Red(2012), Richard here articulately plays a gentler, more understated character. When Vanya finally speaks up in a climacteric scene during the second act, the actor does it with such conviction that it leaves one with no doubts about the urgency of his character’s message.
A superb actress whose manner at times strongly remind me of Joan Cusack, Petersen has many tricks up her sleeve and gives us a developed, nuanced character. Watch her facial expressions, for instance, after receiving a phone call from someone asking her out on a date after meeting her at a fancy dress party. Without uttering a word, seeing her trying to process a myriad of emotions after the conversation ends – among them ecstasy, self-doubt and fear – makes one want to root for Sonia even harder. Petersen's Maggie Smith impersonation isn't too shabby either.
And then there’s Saint-Claire. Channeling the greats like Anjelica Huston and Elaine Stritch, she brings a commendable, self-aware sense of humour to Masha's character. Cougar, voodoo victim and menopausal actress coming to terms with being cast as a grandmother; Saint-Claire takes each script’s challenges in her stride.
A colourful, mischievous and thoroughly satirical production where anything can (and will) happen. But while revelling in its randomness and cultural references is highly advised, a word of warning, if you will: Beware of Hootie Pie!
l Tickets are R90 to R135. To book, call 0861 915 8000.