Written by: Samuel D. Hunter

Directed by: Sherri Kronfeld

Arcola Theatre

2 - 27 June 2009

A review by Jafar Iqbal for EXTRA! EXTRA!

More so than in any other form of art and entertainment, innovation in theatre is tough to achieve. Whether it’s innovation in content, style or execution, it is becoming increasingly difficult to present a piece of theatre that would be classed as original. It seems like everything that could be attempted has been attempted; there is, however, an upside. Call it passion, determination or downright stubbornness, but the writers, directors and theatre companies of this world haven’t stopped trying, and don’t plan to any time soon.

Enter, Yaller Skunk Theatre Company.

Yaller Skunk has been around for a few years now. Dedicated to new writing with, as they put it themselves, ‘a passion for visceral, experiential performance’, the company has already received acclaim for work such as In My Name and Back of the Throat. Now they return with I Am Montana, the creation of American playwright Samuel D. Hunter.

As the name suggests, this is a play set in the United States, concentrating on the life of our protagonist, Eben. Born in Israel but spending his whole life in Montana, the young man is forced to fight for Israel against the Palestinians in a war he never wanted to be a part of. Though on returning back to that familiar Montana and to his old friends and job Eben is a changed man. His reasons for changing formulate the rest of the story and as he embarks on a road trip with best friend Tommy and meth-obsessed Dirk, all slowly becomes clear.

You would expect, at first impression of the opening scene, to prepare yourself for a politically-charged play; it is an easy mistake to make, therein appearing the production’s strongest quality. Sure, socio-political commentary makes a strong presence in the play, as it rightly should; but at its foundation, I Am Montana is a socio-political play with all the politics carefully plucked out. It is a story about how war can destroy the human psyche and, in true American coming-of-age fashion, how it can be restored. Hunter executes this by moving the staple American road-trip movie concept to the stage and does so with complete success. It was integral for Hunter to break the rules as he did, as basing a play on the love of an American state could have potentially alienated he audience; fortunately, it doesn’t.

What truly makes the play a joy to watch is the performances of the cast. The four men are all exceptional in their work, with Kevin Watt leading from the front as Eben. His portrayal of a tortured man unable to deal with post-war trauma is done expertly. However, despite the strong performances of all four men, David Ames is by far the show-stealer. He compliments his great comic timing in the first act with fantastic facial expressions; the audience are immediately drawn to him, waiting eagerly for Tommy, his character, to bring a laugh. That power and stage presence over the audience seeps through into Act Two, where he demonstrates a more tragic and serious side to the character, once again pulling us into the helplessness and frustration that he is feeling. Christopher Berry and Mark Curtis are also great in their roles; as meth-addicted Dirk, Berry is arguably the funniest of the four, and Curtis (having both the shortest and most important presence in the play) is hilarious as the Valumart superstore manager.

Technically, the production took a few risks. The most significant risk was the extremely small size of the stage. The venue only seated approximately twenty-five people, all of whom were within touching distance of the actors. This created a strong aura of claustrophobia, which worked perfectly during certain scenes but also meant that any mistakes being made were easier to spot and hurt the production slightly. A nice touch was the changing of set whilst staying in character; at times, the scene changes were quite long and for the actors to remain in character was a consolation of sorts.

All in all, I Am Montana was an extremely enjoyable production, which fulfils its purpose with great achievement. Was it innovative? I would say no but, once again, there is an upside. Despite lacking innovation, the play’s attempts at breaking conventions and stretching the rules that are all-too familiar with socio-political and road-trip stories is admirable. It blends the two together to create something that is unique within itself and does it with considerable success.

Ticket Prices: £14 / £10

Tuesdays “Pay What You Can”

Arcola Theatre, 27 Arcola Street, London E8 2DJ

http://www.arcolatheatre.com

http://www.yallerskunk.co.uk

Tel: 020 7503 1646

Home Reviewers