Brilliant 'Osage County' uncomfortably real
Originally published Friday, July 13, 2007.
"All happy families are alike," wrote Leo Tolstoy in his introduction to "Anna Karenina." "Each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."
The Weston clan portrayed by Tracy Letts in his sprawling, enthralling, fiercely comic "August: Osage County" is unhappy in every way.
A modern American family depicted in all its ragged glory, the Westons recall icons of familial dysfunction previously evoked by Eugene O'Neill, Sam Shepard, Edward Albee and Tennessee Williams. Letts (Pulitzer Prize finalist for "Man From Nebraska" and author of "Bug" and "Killer Joe") presents in vivid detail these middle Americans: compelling, authentic characters his Steppenwolf Theatre colleagues wear like impeccably tailored suits. You may not like them, but you will not soon forget them.
A bracing, perceptive play, "August" examines the resentments and obligations, addictions and infidelities, illicit affairs, secrets, cruelties, failures, regrets and recriminations that comprise this family and by extension our own. It's a noteworthy play that will live on long after the curtain has come down on director Anna D. Shapiro's sterling, well-honed, superbly acted world premiere reuniting eight Steppenwolf ensemble members in one of the year's best productions.
"August" opens with a tidy bit of exposition from Weston patriarch and second-tier poet Beverly, played by Letts' father, Dennis Letts. Quoting from T.S. Eliot's despairing "The Hollow Men," Beverly muses on poetry and chemical dependency while his newly hired, Native American housekeeper Johnna (Kimberly Guerrero) listens silently. Consigned to academia, Beverly contents himself with alcohol. Consigned to an unhappy marriage, his venomous wife, Violet (the unrelentingly acerbic Deanna Dunagan whose commanding performance nearly defies description), contents herself with pills.
After Beverly goes missing, his daughters and their significant others converge on the family's Oklahoma farmhouse (Todd Rosenthall's faded, cluttered set) to await his return. Barbara (Amy Morton, in another arresting performance reflecting her subtle acting and refined pacing) -whose baggage includes a failing marriage and long-held resentment for her mother - arrives with her unfaithful husband, Bill (Jeff Perry), and daughter, Jean (Fawn Johnstin), who at 14 is too old for her years. Joining her is dutiful middle daughter Ivy, a wounded but undefeated woman played with delicacy andunderstatement by Sally Murphy, who sneaks up on you and breaks your heart. Last to arrive is youngest daughter Karen (a revealing Mariann Mayberry), a slightly desperate woman nearly past her prime looking for a scrap of happiness with her thrice-divorced fiance, Steve (Rick Snyder), a middle-agedcreep who acts too young for his years.
Holding vigil with them are Violet's brassy, domineering sister, Mattie Fae (Rondi Reed in what has become a trademark role); her put-upon husband, Charlie (a quiet but potent Francis Guinan); and their much-maligned, sweet-tempered son (Ian Barfard). Lastly, there's Johnna, who provides care and comfort for the needy family, and the sheriff (Troy West), who delivers news no one wants to hear.
Of course the combination proves toxic, but Letts - with his keen grasp of family dynamics and deft ability to draw parallels between generations - makes it riveting. Especially in the blistering tour-de-force second act that begins with a typical family dinner and crescendos into a climax so harrowing, spellbinding and convincing it may hit too close to home for some audience members.
But into this insightful, uncomfortably real portrait of dysfunction Letts injects affection, compassion and love. Those moments are fleeting, but they exist, leaving us with the hope that redemption, or at least escape, is possible.
More than a fine drama, "August: Osage County" is a love letter to the women of Steppenwolf (while not a member, the brilliant Dunagen has appeared on stage there), who flawlessly inhabit these expertly crafted roles.
Whether the Westons join the Tyrones, Lomans and Big Daddy's brood as one of America's archetypal fractured families remains to be seen. But Letts' impressive play has earned a place in the American canon.
"August: Osage County"
Rating: 3 stars