Just as we're thankful that lost pieces of history resurface in Tom Stoppard's "Arcadia," the audience members of the Greenwich Street Theatre should be thankful that this play is being produced again. With wonderful direction and great performances, this production does more than justice to Stoppard's complex text.
The entire show takes place in a large manor house in Derbyshire, England. Set in the early 1800s and the present day, both periods concern the manor's owners, the Coverly family, and their guests staying at the manor, including the poet Ezra Chater.
In the scenes set in the present, the descendants of the Coverlys are host to the writer Hannah Jarvis, who is writing about the history of their manor. Together with Bernard Nightingale, the Coverlys and Jarvis seek to unravel the history of the weekend in 1809, which is also shown to the audience. This technique gives the audience an interesting ability to compare the future with the past, and see each era's misconceptions about the other.
Out of the 1809 cast, Rachel Jablin at first seems overly perky as the daughter Thomasina Coverly, but she goes on to prove her keen grasp of the bright and bubbly nature of the character. Lori Garrabrant as Lady Croom is lovely, relishing each word as if it were Shakespeare's, yet letting her guard down when it comes to matters of the heart. Tom Cleary as Ezra Chater seems a bit unsure of his choices at times, but makes up for it with tremendous energy. A great foil to all is Andrew Rein as the dry Septimus Hodge, Thomasina's tutor. His mannerisms carry out the necessary sarcasm, yet Rein does not make the mistake of making Hodge emotionally distant.
In the modern cast, Shelley McPherson is quite a talent, as she naturally captures the essence of the cynical and cutting Hannah Jarvis. Micah Freedman is an engaging Valentine Coverly, and Jennifer Lima is the impulsive Chloe. John McWhorter nails the slightly smug Bernard Nightingale on the head (despite a few accent slips here and there). Of special note is Tim Astor, who does a fabulous transition between the silent Gus Coverly in the present and the brassy Augustus in the past.
The black box theater in which the latest production is staged is the ideal setting, as it carries out the specific connection between the characters. Thanks to a set that contains only a few windows and a large center table, most of the action is carried to the front while retaining the realism - it's a treat for the audience to be in tune with the electric portrayal. Director Zander Teller has done an excellent job maintaining the overwhelming emotion amid what could be misinterpreted as a clinical show.
"Arcadia" is fundamentally about the difference and clashes of science and emotion, past and future. Parallels are drawn between the break from classicism and romanticism, where past knowledge and ideals are replaced, to the modern day, where chaos theory has once again left man in a state of knowing very little. Indeed, the past manifests itself in the present scenes through Thomasina's rediscovered theories, and the inspection of the forgotten weekend in 1809. By showing the unpredictable and unplottable intricacies of human relationships, the play demonstrates how very little humans can predict about life, despite the advances of scientific research. Worth the three hours, "Arcadia" is a must-see for anyone wishing to watch great text brought to its full potential.
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