Female-bonding play fails to find its footing
A trio of sassy twentysomething singletons spend a sunny Sabbath in October sharing their feelings, skirmishing over men and slandering their absent roommate in "Sunday on the Rocks," Theresa Rebeck's uninspired ode to female bonding and boozing from 1994, running at Bailiwick Repertory Theatre as part of its Second Sex Series showcasing female-centered works.
Unfortunately, Rebeck's play never really finds its footing and neither does the production under director Victoria Delorio.
Part confessional and part pajama party, "Sunday on the Rocks" centers on Elly (Sienna Harris as a fiercely independent yet damaged young woman) whose decision to have abortion as a result of her unplanned and unwelcome pregnancy inspires a marathon drinking session for which she enlists housemates Gayle (Rebekah Walendzak as the peacemaker) and Jen (Audrey Flegel as the free spirit).
The women alternate discussions on morality, men, sex, politics and religion with diatribes against absent roommate Jessica (Sarah Denison as a straight-laced, soccer mom in the making), all the while getting increasingly soused on scotch.
Secrets are revealed but precious little enlightenment follows over the course of an afternoon interrupted by phone calls from lovesick co-workers and anxious boyfriends, dancing to Gloria Gaynor's hackneyed anthem "I Will Survive," and a brief turn at a Ouija board,
"Sunday on the Rocks" lurches from one impassioned debate to the next with a curious lack of conviction. Blame it on Rebeck's determination to explode every device in her philosophical minefield in this unimpressive play, which concludes with an unconvincing (and troubling) showdown in which one of the characters comes alarmingly close to justifying battery.
Platitudes like "In the 20th century, compassion is a luxury you can't afford;" "I'm an American. We're a nation of perpetual adolescents" and "I've decided it's good not to be apologetic about who you are" make the play feel trite.
None of the thinly drawn characters (rebel, mediator, free spirit, matriarch) are especially memorable so the audience never really invests in them or their problems.
Like a lot of chick lit writers, Rebeck seems reluctant to create unlikable characters who behave badly because that's their nature. Instead she justifies their actions by highlighting how they've been mistreated. Frankly, I would have preferred she kept her bad girls bad. They'd have been more interesting.
"Sunday on the Rocks"
Two stars out of four
Location: Bailiwick Repertory. 1229 W. Belmont Ave., Chicago
Times: 8 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays; 7 p.m. Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sundays through Feb. 10
Running time: About 100 minutes, no intermission
Parking: Metered, some street parking available
Tickets: $20, $25
Box office: (773) 883-1090 or www.bailiwick.org
Rating: For adults, due to language and subject matter