Reviewed
by Judy Richter
It's only fitting that the Magic Theatre should begin its 40th season with Sam Shepard's newest play, "The God of Hell," for Shepard has been closely associated with the San Francisco company for many years and was its playwright in residence from 1975 to 1983. His 1979 Pulitzer Prize-winning "Buried Child" premiered there.
Written
in 2004, "The God of Hell" is said to be Shepard's response to George
W. Bush's
presidency. "The sides are being divided now. It's very obvious,"
Shepard said in a Nov. 12, 2004, interview in the Village Voice. "So if you're on the other
side of the fence, you're suddenly anti-American ... Democracy's a very fragile
thing. You have to take care of democracy. As soon as you stop being
responsible to it and allow it to turn into scare tactics, it's no longer
democracy, is it? It's something else. It may be an inch away from
totalitarianism," he said.
Although
it's never clear exactly what's going on in "The God of Hell," it
clearly refers to some of the issues that have arisen since 9/11 and during the
Bush presidency. It's set on a family-owned dairy farm in Wisconsin in the
winter. In true Shepard style, it's something of a kitchen-sink drama, complete
with working sink and stove (set by Erik Flatmo with lighting by Kurt
Landisman and
sound by Don Seaver), and augmented by a living room with well-worn furniture.
At
first it seems as if nothing is amiss as Emma (Anne Darragh) bustles about in her bathrobe
(costumes by Fumiko Bielefeldt), starts preparing breakfast and waters her houseplants.
Her husband, Frank (John Flanagan), wearing his work clothes, oils his boots and gets
ready to feed his heifers. However, it quickly becomes apparent that all is not
routine. During the night, an old friend of Frank has arrived from Colorado,
saying he needed to get away for a while. Emma is curious about their guest,
who's still asleep in the basement, but Frank isn't very forthcoming perhaps
because he isn't very curious. In fact, the audience never learns how, when and
where Frank and the guest became friends.
After
Frank leaves to tend to the cattle, a fast-talking stranger, Welch (Michael
Santo), comes in
the back door, offers Emma a cookie with an American flag on it and makes
himself at home. Carrying a briefcase full of flag-themed paraphernalia, Welch
appears to be an irrepressible, cheerful salesman, complete with a sharp
haircut, nicely tailored suit, cowboy boots, Texas twang and an American flag
pin in his lapel. However, his conversation hints at darker motivations,
especially when he asks how many rooms the house has and if anyone is in the
basement. After he leaves, Emma awakens her house guest, Greg Haynes (Jackson
Davis), who
gives off major static shocks when Emma touches him and who is extremely
concerned about Welch.
Menace
and mystery intensify during the 75-minute, intermissionless play. Greg
apparently has some connection with RockyButtes, Colo., a fictional reference
to Rocky Flats, Colo., where a closed U.S. nuclear weapons plant could still
pose a danger. Welch apparently has some connection with undercover government
operations that resort to torture to ferret out perceived security risks. At
one point, he leads Greg from the basement with an electrical wire attached to
Greg and a black hood over Greg's head a la Abu Ghraib. Welch seems to demand
mindless conformity to his credo and pulls Frank into his fold along with Greg.
Only Emma escapes the worst of his tactics, perhaps because she constantly
questions what's going on and expresses horror at it. How long she will remain
free from him is questionable, though.
The
four actors chosen by director Amy Glazer seem perfectly cast for their roles, and she
guides them carefully as the tension, fear and mystery build. Santo's Welch
seems only annoying at first, but the dangers he poses become more and more apparent.
Flanagan's Frank is a seemingly simple, accepting man who wants nothing more
than to care for his cattle. As Greg, Davis embodies fear and paranoia, while
Darragh is instinctively aware of the menaces that have entered her home
without knowing exactly what they are but having the gumption to resist them.
Despite
the unknowns, Shepard has written a chilling commentary on today's headlines.
At one point, Welch says, "We can do whatever we want. ... We're in
absolute command now." The flag is merely camouflage as he runs roughshod
over three people's rights -- the Constitution be damned.