Eric Alter’s electrifying new play, The War at Dawn, is
not what you think it’s about. It’s not about the Iraq War nor the
depredations of George W. Bush’s administration. It’s 2010; Bush
is no longer in office, and both the domestic and international
situations are far far worse than they are now.
Somebody -- that nebulous, all purpose "they" -- have nuked
Cleveland Ohio and blown up the Golden Gate bridge. Martial law
has been declared and all men up to age 40 are subject to the
draft. The United States is at war with Pakistan, with other
theaters bound to erupt.
So the play begins, after a moment or two of Jimi Hendrix’
psycho rendition of The Star Spangled Banner, with a woman
hysterically begging her husband not to go and fight. Called
Mississippi and played by Miguel Emir, he’s a 35 year old African
American psychologist. He doesn’t want to go, and his doubts about
the war -- and war in general -- is one of the play’s themes. But
he does his duty and heads for training camp, where he meets "New
York" (Hayden Roush), a decade younger, white, single, gung-ho,
and not the sharpest knife in the cutlery drawer. A factory worker
in real life, he jumped at the chance to sign up and inflict
damage on whoever had inflicted damage on his country.
That the two clash is inevitable; one just knows that they’re
going to end up punching each other out. But the violence
inflicted comes from a wholly unexpected source -- the two
soldiers are kidnapped and held hostage by Tucker, the very
officer who’s supposed to lead them into battle.
It’s the play’s second act that elevates it to greatness. The
soldiers are bound to chairs and spend the rest of the evening
(the action actually happens in the few hours before sunrise)
menaced by Tucker, played with a feral energy by Morgan Parker. We
can see that he’s crazy, and we know that he’s going to kill the
two men who sit helplessly before him. But how? With that little
snub nose pistol he thrusts into New York’s mouth for a lark? With
that wicked looking knife? With his bare hands? And more
importantly, why? The tension as we wait for what will happen to
happen crackles; in the meantime the soldiers desperately try to
puzzle out how to get away from this maniac and, in the face of
death, reveal some painful secrets of their own.
Aside
from its suspense The War at Dawn is a play of ideas, and
contemplates more in sorrow than anger the endlessness of war and
the devastation it wreaks on ordinary people. Tucker wanted to be
a veterinarian but was goaded by his military minded father into
the service. Years of killing have stripped him of all but a scrap
of his humanity, though he’s determined to make that scrap count.
Late in the play he reveals the secret behind the destruction of
Cleveland and the mission he’ll lead to both avenge it and prevent
a global thermonuclear war. The price, he lets the soldiers know,
will be horrifying -- perhaps unacceptably so. Alter is known, at
least to the reviewer, for good-hearted and insightful romantic
comedies; The War at Dawn represents a maturation of his talents.
The performances are exceptional, with Emir as the thoughtful,
reluctant but ultimately brave Mississippi, Roush as the blowhard
but vulnerable New York. Parker, with his wolf’s grin and buzz
cut, is amazing as the damaged career soldier determined to hold
on to his humanity by his fingernails. Sonia Tatninov is deeply
moving as both Mississippi’s terrified wife and a vision from
Tucker’s terrifying past. Rodney E. Reyes’ direction is crisp all
the way through, and Jamie Kimball’s lighting design is also well
considered, with the first act mostly bathed in darkness and the
second in bright light. The set design is simple; in the first act
the little stage holds a simple triangle of tree stumps and rocks,
and in the second the chairs the soldiers are bound in, and the
table on which Tucker keeps his implements of torture. The
costumes are also appropriate, especially Tucker’s full dress
uniform, replete with medals and ribbons, a reminder to the
audience of war’s allure.
By the way, on the night the reviewer attended the performance
there were four people in the audience of the Beckman Theater, and
one of them was a member of the crew. Still, the actors and crew
gave 100%. Kudos to them!
The War at Dawn will be at the Beckman Theater at the American
Theatre of Actors, 314 West 54th Street, till October 30.
