Redtwist gives Albee's 'Woolf' an intimate, up-close feel
The set for redtwist theatre's revival of Edward Albee's "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" looks nothing like you'd expect.
Designer Anders Jacobson does away with the comfortably cluttered living room that typically serves as playground for New England college professor George and his wife, Martha. He replaces it with a cool, cartoon alternative, comprised of hard lines, sharp angles, a black and gray palette and a skewed perspective that mirrors the characters' warped psyches.
Not surprisingly, the lone splash of color in this intriguing, monochromatic set comes from the vivid, primary colored liquor that fuels the action.
Welcome to the funhouse: an apt setting for an iconic couple who elevate game-playing to an art.
Redtwist's funny, ferocious production reflects Chicago's storefront theater at its best: up close and very personal. The company's Edgewater space holds fewer than 40. But this tiny venue may be the best way to experience Albee's uncomfortably intimate account of the confounding, co-dependent relationship between discontented, undistinguished academic George (Michael Colucci, subtle, cagey and always in control), and his abrasive wife Martha (a coarse, candid and altogether engrossing Jan Ellen Graves).
Their derision is exceeded only by their dependence. Yet somehow they manage to make their dysfunctional marriage function. They're like a couple of kids, engaged in a never-ending game of one-upsmanship.
Sarcasm underscores every interaction. Yet there's a playfulness to their exchanges, at least initially. But their skirmishes escalate and the insults and injuries become more pointed as the game spirals out of control.
Into their playhouse they invite Nick (deft work by Paul Perroni who manages to be both smug and awkward at the same time), an ambitious young professor, and his mousy wife Honey (the terrific Amy Speckien, who makes her character more than a mere simp). They become the unwitting participant/observers to the boozy confrontations, confessions and revelations that make up this long night's journey into day.
Albee's play, which begins at a low simmer, heats up and boils over into an ecstatic display of violence. Unrestrained, it becomes a cliché. Co-directors Colucci and Malcolm Martinez don't let that happen. Working from the script Albee revised for 2005's Broadway revival starring Bill Irwin and Kathleen Turner (who toured in the production that played here last year), they've effectively tailored this visceral drama (played in two acts instead of the traditional three) to redtwist's confines. That said, the staging gets a little static at times and the floor seating makes for some awkward sightlines. (The platforms flanking the stage seem to offer a better overall view).
But those are minor points in what is a well-paced, expertly cast production. For my money, Perroni and Speckien outshine their counterparts from last year's Broadway tour. But this show belongs to Graves and Colucci.
Ultimately, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" is a love story -- a perverse love story, one filled with scorn and humiliation -- but a love story nevertheless. Graves and Colucci, who are married in real life, never let us forget that.
"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"
3½ stars out of four
Location: redtwist theatre (formerly Actors Workshop Theatre), 1044 W. Bryn Mawr, Chicago
Times: 8 p.m. Thursdays to Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sundays through March 30
Running time: About 2 hours, 20 minutes with intermission
Tickets: $22-$30
Parking: Street parking
Box office: (773) 728-7529 or redtwist.org
Rating: For adults