Do apples fall far from their tree? One would have to say
definitely not! They fall just where they grew on the branch. Those branches closest
to the tree fall closest etc., but never further out from the furthest branch,
especially not in Grand Rapids, Mi. where our story begins and where a huge
apple tree that was growing in the backyard, has died.
After sitting through Noah Haidle’s quirky and whimsical “Smokefall”, now on stage in La Jolla at the
Theodore and Adele Shank Theatre where Backyard Renaissance Theatre is in
residence for the rest of this year, the apples on Haidle’s eccentric family
tree are as close to being replicas of their past (four generations) than they will
ever know.
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| Cast of Smokefall |
Apple trees (dead and re-grown); a daughter that hasn’t
spoken a word in years and eats mulch; tree bark, shoes and drinks paint to
wash them down is just the beginning of Act I (Help Me Remember).
A depressed husband that walks away from his family; a loving
(pregnant) mother who has a running dialogue with her unborn twins fetus’ (One
and Two) that talk to each other in utero, and a grandfather who is a retired Colonel
(Antonio TJ Johnson), suffering from dementia make up this dysfunctional family
unit.
The narrator who is called Footnote (Brian Mackey) enters at
the top of the play. He tries to keep
all the apples in their proper places by telling the audience, what to expect
and what is. This family will inhabit the Shank Stage through Sept. 16th.
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| Jessica John Gercke and Francis Gercke |
Mackey’s character, Footnote walks us through most of the
dialogue with little action coming from the characters. Dad Daniel (Francis
Gercke) has already decided he is not coming home tonight. At night in bed he
makes lists of all reasons to be grateful.
On this morning he kisses his daughter Beauty (Fedra Ramirez
Olivares) hello, and checks in on the twins ‘who he feels were a mistake’ and
he talks to the Colonel about how he feels. He kisses his wife goodbye, leaves
the house and never returns.
Before that, his wife Violet (Jessica John Gercke) will
remind him to ‘talk to the twins, which he does … (‘Help me remember the glory
of living’) and he lets us in on the health and needs of the Colonel whose sickness
has gone downhill since his wife’s death.
Footnote: “After breakfast, Daniel will drive past his
office, he’ll buy three loaves of bread from the gas station and feed the
ducks. He’ll call in sick, get in his car and start driving west. By 11 he’ll
be in Chicago. After this morning, Daniel will never see any of his family
again.”
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| Francis Gercke and Brian Mackey |
Act II is the pièce de résistance and what makes “Smokefall”
so memorable (Where We’ll Never Grow Old).
It takes place in Violet's womb where we meet up with the twins, Fetus One (Francis
Gercke) and Fetus Two (Brian Mackey). It’s a dark chamber with red neon lights
attached to each twin with enough length to allow for standing and moving about
and an eventual flight into the world.
They are dressed in straw hats, argyle socks and matching
knitted vests, Two is wearing saddle shoes, One has on black shoes. They are
sitting atop the duo layered set, legs are dangling and their conversation/discussions take on different
tones.
They seem to be in the middle of a philosophical debate about
the next chapter in their lives after they are born and what lies ahead for
them. The banter gets a bit heady when the conversation turns to ‘original sin’,
(Remember that apple tree?) to free will, to Sondheim’s “Send In The Clowns”
after one of their jokes bombed.
They argue over which one will be named Samuel and who will
be called Johnny. As they prepare to leave the warmth and security of the womb,
they look very much like they will be jumping out of a plane.
The whole act is surreal, oft times funny oft tragic, but much
too delving into the theoretical and theological for moi. Unfortunately the act ends
in tragedy for one of the twins. As in life childbirth is not without its risks
and the playwright doesn’t hesitate to let us know that as fast as love grows,
it can be taken away in a heartbeat or in this case an umbilical chord.
Fast forward to Act III in the future (The Attempt Is How We Live).
It’s 74 years after the twins’ birth. The once fallen apple
tree has sprouted up between the floorboards in the kitchen; Beauty comes back
into the picture. She is now in her 90’s never looking a day older than she was
in Act I and speaking in whole sentences, thank you. The (back then) Colonel is
the now the older Johnny whose now son Samuel has come back to the family home for
a birthday celebration.
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| Jessica John Gercke |
There is a lot going on here especially since the playwright
has a tendency to repeat, mostly through the narration, what’s happened in the
past. Again, rather showing us, he continues more of the same information hoping
it will sink in?
Be that as it may, I had more trouble dealing with the
‘original sin’ conversation (one of the themes from Elliot’s poem), along with his
themes of Time-Past, Time Present, Time- Future as defined by the narrative
than I did understanding that what the future holds is up to us, not
necessarily from Devine intervention alone.
But watching a talented group of actors challenge themselves
to make the whole thing work gave yours truly a sense of gratitude that they
gave us this opportunity.
Work it did, with the help of lighting designer (brilliant
lighting) Curtis Mueller, Jeanne Reith’s costume choices, Melanie Chen Cole’s
sound design and Justin Humphries set design (the chrome kitchen set looked just like the one I had in my first apartment and the floor lamp greatly resembled mine as well) especially after the break when an
apple tree welcomed us back between Acts II and III.
Co-directing, artistic director Francis Gerke and Andrew
Oswald keep a tight reign on their actors allowing them to give back what the
playwright has set before them. Delving into family dynamics is often fraught
with danger.
The characters, while lacking much in depth on the surface but
for the narrator’s descriptions, all manage to shift gears and take on multiple
identities. The one constant is Jessica John Gercke’s Violet. Her sweetness and
nimbleness radiates throughout making the themes that the greatest gift of all
is love, and “Nothing lasts forever, it isn’t supposed to”, believable.
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Hats off to Backyard Renaissance with Brian Mackey, Antonio TJ Johnson, Fran Gercke and Fedra Rameriz Olivares for taking risky theatre choices and making them look like ‘a piece o’ cake.
Beautifully done!
See you at the theatre.
Dates: Through Sept. 16th
Organization: Backyard Renaissance Theatre Company
Phone: 619-977-0999
Production Type:
Where: 2910 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla, CA92037
Ticket Prices: $18.00-$35.00
Web: backyardrenaissance.com
Venue: Theodore and Adele Shank Theatre
Photo: Daren Scott
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