T H E AT E R
BY ANNA GRACE
COLIN GRAY, ELLEN CHACE, KARSTEN TOPELMANN,
JOE CRONIN AND MELANIE MOSER
QUESTION
COMMUNITY
OCT explores the connection between
language and belonging with Tribes
Y
ou can be in. You can be out. That goes for all
of us, wherever we are. Every community, no
matter how open, has its own rules and its own
method of communication.
Billy’s family is no different.
As loving and sickly dysfunctional as any modern
family, this intelligent, uncouth brood feasts on words. The
patriarch holds his family in an embrace of insults. His
vituperation falls like a heavy snow, cocooning his
children in his castigation until they are unable to leave the
house and find their way in the world. Complaining and
mediating alongside Billy are an opera-singing sister, a
pot-smoking academic brother and an aspiring novelist
mother. Everyone is desperately trying to be heard.
Billy is trying to listen. Born deaf into a family of
hearing people, Billy’s parents choose not to “raise him
deaf.” He never learned sign language, but he reads lips
and expressions brilliantly; he can only “hear” what he can
see.
When Billy meets a woman who teaches him American
Sign Language and introduces him to the deaf community,
he finally understands what it means to be heard. His love
for each world forces him into a rocky boat ride between
the two shores on which these rival tribes rest.
Premiering in London in 2010, Tribes is by relatively
new playwright Nina Raine. Her mastery of language and
understanding of community and communication make
this a fascinating play, but it’s not perfect. The show slips
along in a satisfying ride, helping you think about family,
diversity and understanding. Then the plot takes a turn into
the tiresome. In the last 20 minutes, major twists are
introduced leaving issues unresolved in a way that made
me wonder at Raine’s editor. Not gilding the lily so much
as waxing it, this odd plot shift is the only thing that holds
the play back.
Raine nearly makes up for this bump in plotting by
creating rich and challenging characters. Every actor had
substantial work, and the cast is strong and loud.
Karsten Topelmann is excellent as Billy. The skills he
had to master just to start the role are impressive, and he
layers that with excellent characterization. Liv Burns as
Sylvia has the most interesting role, as the hearing
daughter of deaf parents who is going deaf herself. With a
foot in each world and fluency in both languages, she
balances between the two worlds, loving and resenting
each. Ellen Chace is incredible as her character spends
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much time in reaction to the thoughtless words and actions
of others. It is always a pleasure to watch the work of
veteran actor Joe Cronin. His Christopher is intense and
hysterical.
Sound and communication appear as characters as well.
Director Craig Willis’ blocking feels like he’s working in
the round, although he has a three-quarter stage. Sometimes
you can see actors’ faces and begin to rely on watching
them sign or speak, and at other times Willis will
intentionally frustrate a portion of the audience by keeping
an actor turned away. This works to illustrate the play’s
central theme of how language binds a community.
Strong artistic experiences open your mind to new
truths about the world. By taking the concept of belonging
and placing it in an arena many of us know nothing about,
the deaf community, and somewhere we all know
intimately, the family, Raines is able to help us rethink
how we communicate with those we love. ■
Tribes runs through Saturday Feb. 1 at Oregon Contemporary Theatre.
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85th SEASON!
AUDITIONS
HABEAS
CORPUS
The Very Little Theatre
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Bawdy British farce by Alan Bennett
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by Julia Cho
Saturday, Jan. 25
A delightful comedy about love
and lost languages.
Directed by James Aday.
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Jan. 17-19*, 23-26*
Sunday
Jan. 30-Feb. 1 * Matinees
Tix: $17 ($12 for Thursdays)
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7L[RQOLQHDWwww.TheVLT.com
541-344-7751
CALLBACKS Jan. 27, at 7 p.m.
Roles for 7 men and 5 women,
ages early 20s to 50s
Actors will be asked to audition with
English accents. Check out scripts
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For more information, contact
director Karen Scheeland at
karensch@uoregon.edu
More details at VLT website:
www.TheVLT.com
eugeneweekly.com • January 16, 2014
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