`FENCES' HOLDS UP WELL.Byline: Evan Henerson Theater Critic The role is a modern-day Everest for an actor past the age of 50: a flawed man with broken dreams who is trying to overcome -- or break through -- an uneasy relationship with his embittered em·bit·ter tr.v. em·bit·tered, em·bit·ter·ing, em·bit·ters 1. To make bitter in flavor. 2. To arouse bitter feelings in: was embittered by years of unrewarded labor. son. No, not Willy Loman, although the thematic similarities to ``Death of a Salesman'' are unmistakable. We're talking about Troy Maxson, the baseball player-turned-garbageman of August Wilson's ``Fences.'' The part has fallen to Charlie Robinson Charles Henry Robinson (July 27, 1856 in Westerly, Rhode Island - May 18, 1913) was a 19th century Major League Baseball catcher during the 1884 & 1885 seasons. See also
Robinson, best known as the amiable bailiff bailiff Officer of some U.S. courts whose duties include keeping order in the courtroom and guarding prisoners or jurors in deliberation. In medieval Europe, it was a title of some dignity and power, denoting a manorial superintendent or royal agent who collected fines and , Mac, on TV's ``Night Court,'' can swing a mean stick and believably browbeat brow·beat tr.v. brow·beat, brow·beat·en , brow·beat·ing, brow·beats To intimidate or subjugate by an overbearing manner or domineering speech; bully. See Synonyms at intimidate. his fellow ``Fences'' mates. Even so, it's a long shadow from which Robinson -- and pretty much any future Troy Maxson -- must escape. Angelenos with decent memories may recall original star James Earl Jones Earl Jones may refer to:
Not so many ``Fences'' have been built in this town during the ensuing years. Jeffrey Hayden, the Odyssey ``Fences''' director and producer, clearly holds great admiration for the work. His production, handsome and multi-toned, is careful not to make a martyr out of Troy. Hayden has smoothly cast the extended family -- Troy's brother, eldest son and fellow garbage worker, Bono. Less compelling are Elayn J. Taylor and Tjader France playing Troy's wife and embittered younger son, respectively. That's a key volatile triangle rendered somewhat neutral, but somehow the play -- a Pulitzer Prize Pulitzer Prize Any of a series of annual prizes awarded by Columbia University for outstanding public service and achievement in American journalism, letters, and music. Fellowships are also awarded. winner and perhaps Wilson's best known -- isn't torpedoed. The playwright's words are as charged as ever, and his characters are recognizable. They could be Lomans. More importantly, they could be us. Troy especially. Here's a character who lived a hard youth, fathered a child young, went to jail and discovered a good woman and baseball. He tore up the Negro leagues Negro leagues Associations of teams of black baseball players active largely between 1920 and the late 1940s. The principal leagues were the Negro National League, originally organized by Rube Foster in 1920, and the Negro American League, organized in 1937. , but -- being past age 40 -- couldn't break through to the Majors. When we meet Troy, it's 1957, the onetime slugger is a garbage collector and occasional union agitator ag·i·ta·tor n. 1. One who agitates, especially one who engages in political agitation. 2. An apparatus that shakes or stirs, as in a washing machine. Noun 1. whose only hope of advancement is to move from being a loader to a driver. Back at the Maxson house (a warm but no-frills porch designed by Thomas Brown There have been several notable individuals named Thomas Brown, including:
``Fences'' is not a play with great amounts of action. Character development takes place through leisurely exchanges: Troy and Bono (played by William Stanford William Stanford (1837 - 1880) was an Australian sculptor. He was born in England in 1836 or 1837 and as a youth was apprenticed to a stone mason. He came to Victoria in 1852 and for a time worked on the diggings at Bendigo. Davis); Troy, Bono and Troy's elder son Lyons (Jonathan T. Floyd); Troy and Rose. Robinson taps Troy's charm more easily than the character's resentment or fury. The actor is big but not imposing, and he seems to be more in puppy love with Taylor's Rose than treating her like a life raft. You want that relationship to come across as rockier and yet more desperate. Providing an ever-steadying presence is Davis as Troy's devoted but un-snowable friend Bono. Dig Wayne, as Troy's brain-damaged brother Gabriel (a war casualty), is scary good. And even with a few parts out of whack, the play still sings. At summer's end, we're due for director Sheldon Epps' take on Wilson's play for a revival at the Pasadena Playhouse The Pasadena Playhouse is a historic theatre located in Pasadena, California. History The Playhouse's history began in 1917 when actor/director Gilmor Brown began producing a season of plays at an old burlesque house, which he renamed the Savoy. . How interesting it will be to see who is holding Troy Maxson's iconic Louisville Slugger and whether he'll connect when he swings it. Evan Henerson, (818) 713-3651 evan.henerson(at)dailynews.com FENCES - Three stars Where: Odyssey Theatre Ensemble, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles. When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday to Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday; through Aug. 6. Tickets: $24 to $28. (310) 477-2055; www.odysseytheatre.com In a nutshell: The late August Wilson's signature play capably -- if not spectacularly -- rendered. |
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