As I write this, it’s Bloomsday, the tribute to James Joyce and his novel Ulysses. In that lineage, but closer to the style of his younger friend Samuel Beckett is the work of contemporary playwright Will Eno. Eno’s work Title and Deed is on the boards currently, brought to us by The Midnight Company.
Eno’s work seems close to stream-of-consciousness, and here, as in several of his works, it’s a one-person show. Joe Hanrahan, the company’s artistic director and co-founder, has done other Eno work like his THOM PAIN (based on nothing). He has a sure hand with the playwright’s work and it’s certainly shown off with this.
The unnamed person in the show is an immigrant – maybe Irish, to judge from the accent – who’s been Here, the unnamed Here, a while. He tells tales of arrival, of what has happened to him since he got here, and of his life before, where he grew up and his parents. But it’s not a straight line narrative, rather bouncing back and forth, sometime stuttering to a halt. Hanrahan totally inhabits the character, who manages to be puzzling, charming at time, but mostly very interesting. He does an excellent job.
The Midnight Company is once again using Avatar Studios, which is in an office park just off South Ewing west of Jefferson. There really is no set, just lighting and sound, all this from Bess Moynihan’s design. But being in a commercial studio is an interesting experience in itself, and the sparseness accentuates the acting and dialogue. Sarah Whitney directed.
Title and Deed is not among Eno’s best works. Hanrahan gives it all he’s got, though, and that’s enough.
Title and Deed
The Midnight Company
through June 24
Avatar Studios
2675 Scott Ave.
314-487-5305