Spring Break
Ills of marriage inspire Tony-nominated play
Ki Russell
Issue date: 10/24/05 Section: Culture
- Page 1 of 1
|
Alice (Merle Moores) and Edward (Mark Robbins) have been married for almost 34 years, but their marriage is not exactly on the best of terms.
Edward enjoys the simple things in life like the newspaper crossword puzzle; he merely goes through the motions. On the other hand, Alice is melodramatic, overbearing and opinionated. She can recite whole poems at the drop of a dime and henpecks her husband in an attempt to get an emotional rise out of him.
"I want a reaction. I want a real marriage," Alice says several times in the first half of the play.
When 32-year-old son Jamie (Nathan Darrow) comes to visit for the weekend, Edward announces he is leaving Alice for another woman. Jamie is shocked, and Alice is devastated. The rest of the play explores if Alice and Edward were ever right for each other to begin with as each member of the family adapts to the new situation.
"Moscow" is a Tony-nominated play written by William Nicholson. Nicholson has authored several books and plays. He co-wrote the screenplay for "Gladiator" and has done work on many other movies and television shows. Nicholson states on his Web site that "Moscow" was written about "the failure of my parents' marriage."
I heard about half of all marriages end in divorce, and the saying must be true because most of the people I know have parents who are no longer together. My own parents divorced before I reached high school.
Students with divorced parents who see "Moscow" will most likely identify with Jamie. He is placed in the center of his parents' mess; he must mediate the situation by appealing to his father's rationalism but understanding his mother's emotions. Although Jamie is an adult, his reactions show what it is like to be a child stuck in the middle of a divorce. I remember countless times when I had to remind my mother the coward she was referring to was still my father, just as Jamie does in the play.
Watching Alice and Edward's ending marriage play out inside the Unicorn's small theater is like peeping in on a neighbor's life. The set's muted brown and gold colors of the small kitchen and living area strengthen the audience's impression that they are watching a real-life family coping with a serious issue.
"Moscow" takes a serious look at the breaking up of the family but has lighter moments, too. There are several well-placed lines and moments that allow for comic relief. One particularly funny scene sees Alice reveal her new companion to Jamie. It is a dog, his name is Edward, and he plays dead when Alice exclaims, "Die, Edward, die!"
For more information visit www.unicorntheatre.org.
blane@unews.com
