"The willing suspension of disbelief" is a phrase still tossed around once in a while as an impediment to enjoying art, or even just entertainment. It's nonsense, of course, but sometimes you still hear it with plays like "Rembrandt's Gift". Tina Howe, a playwright who writes on the border of absurdism, is often great fun to watch, and if you're willing to watch Superman flying, why can't you watch Rembrandt appearing in a studio apartment in lower Manhattan?
Running through this upcoming weekend at Dramatic License Productions, which operates at Chesterfield Mall, it's a story of an actor and a photographer, married many years, who have left their professions because of his obsessive-compulsive disease and hoarding and her – well, her what? Co-dependency on his craziness, perhaps. The apartment, a wondrous set by scenic designer Cameron Tesson and costume designer Teresa Doggett, since most of what's visible is costumes from husband Walter's "collection", hanging from pipe racks, curtain racks and furniture, is madcap. "Looks like a college dorm room," murmured my pal as we sat down.
John Contini's Walter is by turns a late middle-aged man, an affectionate husband – and a garden variety loon driven by compulsions and the fear that interlaces with them. He's maddeningly inconsistent, it appears at first, leading the audience to need to watch him. Polly Shaw, whose early photography earned her major acclaim, is Kim Furlow, the Rembrandt fan in the family – it's all about the light, you know. Her transformation from frazzled to bedazzled charms. And then there's Rembrandt himself, the time traveller. Greg Johnston is the artist at the end of his career, impoverished and threadbare – but loving Walter's costumes – and stunned by the voyage he's made. Johnston's Rembrandt makes every attempt to be polite to the disbelieving Walter, and we can see him begin to take in the world around him. It's when he notices the poster of his self-portrait that things really begin to sink in.
Annamaria Pileggi directs with a sure hand, keeping things moving well, trying hard to handle a few odd spots in the script like the bursts of slangy synonyms with which the hosts try to explain certain things to the guest in the house. Lighting and sound by Max Parilla add a lot, especially to the unexpected arrival of the artist.
Good fun.
Rembrandt's Gift
through November 9, 2014
Dramatic License Productions
636-821-1746