Infantry Mono Review
Life's infantry corps
Review » Three honest, harsh monologues are delivered with intense performances.
By Roxana Orellana
The Salt Lake Tribune
Updated: 05/22/2009 05:09:52 PM MDT
Playwright Tobin Atkinson's "Infantry Monologues" is the type of work that makes an actor stand out -- or make a mess of him or herself.
In its Salt Lake City premiere, the three-actor cast doesn't disappoint, and each of a trio of monologues serves to highlight their talent and the script's storytelling strengths.
Atkinson, who wrote, directs and performs, comes off as a triple threat in bringing to the stage monologues connected by the overarching theme of personal responsibility in life-or-death circumstances. He says he wrote the works to reflect different stages of his thoughts during four years serving in the Army, while the title works more effectively as a life metaphor rather than suggesting just military stories.
As an accused killer in "Coyoteway," Atkinson conveys the madness of someone bewitched by the supernatural but with a convincing logic. What works about the segment is conveyed from the moment the spotlight first hits the character: he grabs you by the throat in recounting what led the former defense lawyer for the Navajo nation to a Canadian police station.
In embodying the uninhibited character, Atkinson is animated, presents a range of impersonations and mostly sustains the level of urgency throughout the lengthy monologue, interrupted only by the implied questions of an investigator.
That length suggests something else about the work: each piece urgently needs an editor, reflecting the downside of
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producing, directing and acting your own work.
The second piece tells the story of a Latina U.S. Army combat medic, Olivia (Deena Marie Manzanares), who wants to avenge the abuse of her roommate and friend, and is intensely invested in doing what's right.
Manzanares is fluid in her line delivery, even if her Spanish pronunciation is awkward. Which isn't entirely her fault, as Atkinson's script could benefit from a native speaker's oversight. Her character represents what it is to be a woman in a harsh place performing a harsh job she never intended.
Manzanares successfully conveys Olivia's physical and mental transformation as she dons her military camos, even if this role doesn't bring out the actor's inherent spontaneity. Less successful, perhaps, is the script's contrivance in staging, depicting her explaining herself to her comatose friend.
And by the third segment, in case theatergoers still have doubts about the strong acting displayed here, actor Jay Perry will make you a convert.
Because his character, Joshua Larkin, is, too. Perry successfully conveys the integrity, naiveté and passion of a Christian convert who has just made an epic discovery for world salvation. He embarks on an agriculture mission to save the godless souls detained in a Colorado camp.
Perry is confident and calm in the role -- one example is the way the actor holds his hands so carefully on his thighs, representing his cool-headedness under questioning -- on a stage he shares only with the chair he is sitting on. And the lighting director.
That becomes a problem here, as the red spotlight that denotes the off-stage interrogator's questions is distracting.
What's successful about "Infantry Monologues," is how Atkinson's confident direction helps the actors keep the audience's attention, while even in his script's most overwrought moments, the writing remains relevant and honest.
A particularly telling moment is when Atkinson's character is asked why he does what he does, and he responds by saying that he likes it. "Most people are too f***ing delicate these days to even admit that a monster exists," he says. "I get to become the thing that scares 'em, so I can kill the thing that terrifies 'em."
That philosophy of theater carries this work, and suggests Atkinson and wife Marynell Hinton's new-to-Salt Lake company, Meat & Potato Theatre, should garner a loyal following with the promise of rich and provocative works.
Meat & Potato Theatre's 'Infantry Monologues'
Bottom line » Strong acting and lively storytelling help sell passionate, idea-driven monologues.
© 2008 Meat & Potato Theatre