Williamsnton Goes For Something Dark

When you enter the Williamston Theatre to see “900 Miles to International Falls” a world premier play written by Annie Martin, you won’t know what to expect.  The stage is totally empty except for a huge screen, made of squares and covering the entire back wall.

Suddenly, a cacophonous montage video (created by Alison Dobbins along with the playwright, Annie Martin) fills up the screen splattered with overlapping You Tubes and cable news reports in various languages, reporting the news of the day – aliens arriving on earth, wars are everywhere, we need to be watchful.

Welcome to Detroit, 2054.

In walks Tanya (Casaundran Freeman) and Kelsey (Darah Donaher), unfolding their Transformer-like furniture to reveal a workstation for manufacturing weapons. They then pop a few squares of the screen which magically become shelves of mean looking machine guns that the women are assembling.

The screen is a brilliantly designed set piece by Bartley H. Bauer.  It cleverly serves the plot perfectly – exposing doors, living rooms, and kitchens.

The colors are grey and the mood is darker. Tanya is sullen and doesn’t want to talk.  Kelsey is all a-twitter, thinking about the upcoming birth of her baby and talking up a storm.  Tanya is having none of it.

Karen Sheridan plays Mrs. Nadel (and several other parts) who supervises and snoop-ervises the women.  Everyone is a potential spy from the government or even worse, an alien who looks like everyone else. Rules are strictly enforced and you can’t trust anyone.

Interesting: In the past couple of decades futurist plays and movies are always bleak, dreary and scary. This is no exception.

You can’t blame Tanya for being paranoid, she has a teenage son, Clark (jon kent), at home who is soon to be drafted in the endless war where all the men seem to be. She must protect him at all costs.

The only joy in the lives of these woman are pregnancies and births.  Overhead speakers are always announcing births (many with multiples) and each time a baby is born, a celebration is had, complete with a sheet cake. And there are semination stations located throughout the factory.

Also, the workers are always being barraged by propaganda slogans, like “Empty wombs are empty opportunities” and “The planet is ours to lose, the sacrifice is ours to give.”

It’s difficult to not compare this world with Margaret Atwood’s iconic novel and TV series “The Handmaid’s Tale”.

The play’s first act moves slowly, but the second winds up quickly to several emotional moments.  Casaundra Freeman is intense and fierce as Tanya.  The mama bear is protecting her cub against all odds. She is even capable of driving 900 miles to International Falls MN to save him.

Her disciplined performance builds the character and plot slowly, making the most of every powerful event.

As her son Clark, jon kent is full of personality, fun and is eminently likeable.  He plays with the children, dances, and is a charmer.  Kent is a shining presence in the play. 

Clark becomes friendly with a new neighbor in his apartment building, J (Heather Mahoney).  An attractive woman who is also pregnant and has eyes for her son, Tanya looks at her with apprehension.  Mahoney is a young actress who plays this mysterious character with just the right amount of cunning.

Karen Sheridan displays her professional chops by playing several disparate characters, some with accents.  She changes personalities on a dime and is very effective.

Williamston Theatre is known for warm and humorous plays and is in different territory here.  The play communicates important commentaries on our society but shows precious little light at the end of the tunnel.

The story has suspense and tension but lacks enough breadth of character to make it engaging enough. Director Tony Caselli paces the action very well and brings forth excellent performances from the entire cast.

“900 Miles to International Falls” will continue through March 1.  For tickets and information, call (517) 655-7469 or www.williamstontheatre.org.