NEW YORK—The Steppenwolf Theatre Company brings to life what is probably the most dysfunctional family to grace the Broadway stage in many a year, with the absolutely brilliant August: Osage County. Clocking in at nearly three and a half hours, (though one is rarely conscious of the passage of time),Tracy Letts' sweeping saga combines drama, humor, pathos, and pity as it takes an unflinching look at how one generation's mistakes and choices can so dearly affect those who come after.
Set in the present day and taking place in the Weston home, located about 60 miles Northwest of Tulsa, Oklahoma, alcoholic family patriarch Beverly (Dennis Letts), is interviewing Johnna Monevata (Kimberly Guerrero) for the position of a live-in cook, housemaid, and nurse for his wife Violet (Deanna Dunagan), a woman who mixes alcohol and pills regularly and who may not be all there in the mental department.
Barely has Johnna accepted the job when Beverly suddenly vanishes. As Violet and middle daughter Ivy (Sally Murphy) wait for word from the police, the rest of the clan returns to the homestead, each bringing their own special emotional baggage.
Eldest daughter Barbara's (Amy Morton) 28-year marriage to college professor Bill (Jeff Perry) is on the rocks due to his having an affair with one of his students. Caught in the middle is Jean (Madeleine Martin), their precocious, almost 15 year-old daughter who is trying to grow up too fast and be the mature one in this family unit.
Meanwhile, Karen (Marian Mayberry), the youngest of Beverly and Violet's children, is engaged (for all the wrong reasons) to the somewhat older Steve (Brian Kerwin), a man with some rather unsettling proclivities. Also arriving is Violet's overbearing sister Mattie Fae (Rondi Reed) and her henpecked husband Charlie (Francis Guinan).
With everyone's emotions on a hair trigger and Beverly's body having been found, it's only a matter of time before things start to explode. And explode they do, via individual encounters between the relatives, as well as a family dinner where Violet engages in a spiteful game of "truth telling;" a scene that is absolutely riveting.
What makes the play stand head and shoulders above others of this ilk is the richness of the story, which effortlessly shifts from one character to another, each of which whom come across as three-dimensional and fully formed—good work by playwright Letts, who could easily have made many of these people caricatures.
Another important aspect of the is the humor in the work, which goes hand in hand with the drama, and makes one smile at the most somber moments. Some examples of this include Violet wondering why none of the speakers at Beverly's funeral mentioned he was a first-class alcoholic, the reason for having a closed casket service; and everybody wondering just who Johnna is and why she's in the house.
The strength of the text is matched by the abilities of the cast, who come together like a well-oiled machine to bring the story to life. Dunagan is wonderful as the drug-addled Violet, (just watching her trying to climb up and down a flight of stairs in the dark is a hoot.)
A combination Mary Tyrone and Momma Rose, the actress imbues her character with a coat of sympathy and pity painted over a merciless shell of steel.
Matching her blow for blow is Morton as Barbara, a woman who desperately wants to get away from her mother's influence—which may have indirectly destroyed her marriage to Bill—but who comes to realize that she and Violet are more alike that she cares to admit. Reed is good as Violet's bitter sister, a woman afraid to face any sort of truth or confrontation. Murphy, as Ivy, makes perhaps the strongest emotional connection to the audience, when, as the only really sympathetic in the piece, she has what may be her last chance at happiness suddenly snatched away. Mayberry is fun as the desperate Karen, someone basically marrying Steve solely to get away from the family and go to Belize on a honeymoon.
The men in the show have somewhat less to do, but all acquit themselves well. Especially Kerwin, who quite chillingly brings to life a dark aspect of his character, one that Karen tragically refuses to acknowledge. Dennis Letts (the playwright's father) is quite humorous in his one brief scene as Beverly, while Martin works well as a child in an overly permissive household, one without any moral compass to guide her—a fact that does not portend well for the young girl's future.
Direction by Anna D. Shapiro is letter-perfect, nicely keeping the story on an even keel and also knowing that sometimes the best moments are ones that are verbally silent. Set by Todd Rosenthal is excellent, as is the lighting by Ann G. Wrightson, costumes by Ana Kuzmanic, and sound design by Richard Woodbury.
Also in the cast are Ian Barford and Troy West.
August: Osage County
Imperial Theatre
249 West 45th Street
Tickets: 212-239-6200, 800-432-7250 or www.telecharge.com
Information: www.AugustOnBroadway.com
Closes: April 13, 2008
Running Times: 3 Hours, 25 Minutes, with two intermissions
Judd Hollander is the New York correspondent for the London publication The Stage.
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