Footlik Theater's staging puts 'Adding Machine' in perspective

Have you ever felt unappreciated at your job? Have your feelings of being irreplaceable been humbled when you find you are replaced by a machine?

If so, Oakton Community College's production of Elmer Rice's 1923 expressionist drama "The Adding Machine," might be for you.

Under the direction of Mark Fleischer, the play opens Friday at the Footlik Theater at Oakton's Des Plaines campus.

The play centers on Zero, a loyal employee of 25 years, who is callously fired from his number-crunching position and replaced by a machine.

His confused reaction to the firing leads him to murder his boss. When he is executed for his crime, he is thrown into a peculiar afterlife.

"In a contemporary sense, the show is about how much we accept our lot in life in our job and in our role in the community," Fleischer said. "It deals with what we are willing to risk to change it and how we respond to that change."

The production's costumes are based on silent film characters including Charlie Chaplin and the Marx Brothers. They are normal period clothes worn in an unusual way, such as hats that are too small, glasses that are too big.

The cast of 16 embroiders its way through a unique stage setting of out-of-proportion objects.

"The special effects have a meaning in the show," said Monte Rifkin, who plays the character Zero. "There is a bigger-than-life desk that is eight feet high, and my boss is on stilts. The idea is that my office and boss is bigger than the individual and it gives a superior/inferior angle to the audience."

The setting is purposely done in black and white.

"Zero lives in a black and white world so the stage has black and white tones as opposed to a colorful world," Fleischer said.

Fleischer said Rifkin, who has been acting since he was 11 years old, is perfect for the character of Zero.

"He has a lovely disposition in terms of the character," Fleischer said. "It's a demanding role because he's always on stage. He brings an every man quality to the character."

Rifkin, of Skokie, did face challenges in taking on the role of Zero, which was due in part to Zero's extreme emotional highs and lows.

"He's a very complex character," Rifkin said. "Yet, it's exciting to portray his personality going from warm and caring to pragmatic to being crazy. It's a good stretch for an actor because Zero is an enigma."

Rifkin said for people who only see one show per year, this should be the show.

"You will come away with a feeling that you are not worthless and there is some redeeming value to what you do in this life," he said.

If you go

What: "The Adding Machine"

When: Opens Friday; runs 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 4

Where: Footlik Theater at Oakton Community College, 1600 E. Golf Road, Des Plaines

Tickets: Adults $12, students and seniors $10

Call: (847) 635-1900