Chicago Theatre Review

Chicago Theatre Review

Is It Nice?

January 23, 2023 Reviews Comments Off on Is It Nice?

The Birthday Party

At the top of the play, a reticent, middle-age man named Petey ambles into his house and sits down at the table, buried in his newspaper. From the kitchen serving window, his wife Meg calls out to whoever just entered, “Is that you, Petey?” At first he doesn’t respond; then, finally, he confirms that, yes, he’s back from work. She brings him his breakfast which is cornflakes, continually asking, “Is it nice?” He finally answers her. Then Meg brings in a surprise entree: fried bread. Again she asks, “Is it nice?” Her constant, repetitive questions are probably the same exchange of small talk that’s taken place every single morning of their married lives. But the broken record of questions evokes laughter, especially as delivered by the two talented, beautifully directed actors in this production. However, this ambivalent opening scene also sets the tone for the rest of this three-act play.     

A production of a Harold Pinter drama may confuse audiences unfamiliar with the British playwright’s work. His plays, which provide plenty of unexpected, dark humor amidst the overriding menace, present stories that are a bit confusing. Martin Esslin has categorized Pinter’s work as part of the Theatre of the Absurd genre of plays that question the nature of reality versus illusion. They’re hazy, inconclusive and can be open to a variety of interpretations. The dialogue is filled with inconsequential conversation, lots of understatement and plenty of silences. Audiences may even wonder if the actors have forgotten their lines during these long periods of quiet; but the “Pinter Pauses,” as they’re called, are written into the script as part of the characters’ lines. Sometimes what a character says contradicts what he’s actually thinking, which may be even more baffling. Upon leaving a production of a Pinter play, theatre patrons may find themselves delving into hours of post-show discussion.

So not a lot happens, at first. Meg and Petey talk about the weather. They discuss if Stanley, the only resident of their rundown, seaside boarding house, should be wakened so he can have his breakfast and tea. Meg says it’s their boarder’s birthday, even though Stanley later denies that fact, and she wants to have a party for him. Then Petey announces to Meg that two men, Goldberg and McCann, have inquired about staying at their boarding house because, after all, the boarding house is “on the list.” 

Petey returns to work and a grumpy Stanley is finally forced to come downstairs, still in pajamas and robe, in which he spends the entire day. Meg affectionately treats Stanley like her son, but he’s unbelievably surly and rude to her. While complaining about his breakfast and the tea, Stanley adamantly tells Meg he doesn’t want a birthday party. Then he learns that two more men are coming to stay. For some mysterious reason, this news fills the young man with dread and terror. While Lulu, their pretty, young neighbor, takes Meg shopping, the debonaire Mr. Goldberg and hulking Mr. McCann arrive. Suddenly the mood of the play changes to the possibility of danger. 

“The Birthday Party” was Pinter’s first full-length play, following the success of his one-acts, “The Room” and “The Dumb Waiter.” This 1958 drama, which is filled with an air of mystery and menace, is given an excellent production at City Lit. Superbly directed by Artistic Director Terry McCabe, Pinter’s ambiguous story is told by an excellent cast of six talented actors. 

Particularly captivating among the company is Elaine Carlson as Meg. She masterfully plays the kindly, doting English rooming house proprietor with a sweet, gentle touch, like a British Edith Bunker; and for those familiar with the Brit-com, “The Vicar of Dibley,” Ms. Carlson calls to mind the hilarious elderly, Letitia Cropley. Returning to City Lit after his appearance in “The Mark of Kane,” Linsey Falls makes Petey a good foil complement to Meg. And Sahara Glasener-Boles plays Lulu as a bubbly, flirtatious 20-year-old who’s secure in her ability to charm the opposite sex.  

Both the very polished James Sparling and the eloquent Will Casey are absolutely wonderful as the sinister new houseguests, Goldberg and McCann. They corner, interrogate and bully Stanley, in spite of having insisted that a birthday party be thrown for the young man. They seem intent on punishing Stanley for some unrevealed crimes. And David Fink, last seen as Shorty in City Lit’s recent production of “The Virginian,” sharply portrays the often strange and secretive Stanley Webber. When we first meet him, his Stanley appears as an irritable, ill-tempered 30-something who’s just wasting away his life. Meg simply spoils him and he seems content to be without aim or purpose in life. But when Goldberg and McCann show up claiming to belong to a mysterious organization and having “a job to finish,” the worry and fear in Mr. Fink’s eyes and entire body ratchets up to abject terror.

This latest production by City Lit is profound and penetrating. It’s also highly entertaining and not without its share of comedy. The production is faithful to the style and intent of every Harold Pinter work written, and it ticks all the boxes of a carefully-produced and smartly acted Absurdist play. Coming into this production knowing that it’s open to interpretation, and that there are many layers beneath we actually see, hear and feel about the characters, is important. The strange individuals that populate this story, the Pinteresque pauses and the vague horrors seeming to lurk outside this shabby, seaside boarding house are paramount to the pervading dark mood of this piece. So when Meg keeps asking the others, “Is it nice?” she may really be questioning the world around her.     

Highly Recommended

Reviewed by Colin Douglas

Presented January 13-February 26 by City Lit Theater, inside the Edgewater Presbyterian Church at 1020 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., Chicago.

Tickets are available in person at the box office, by calling 773-293-3682, or by going to www.citylit.org.

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.


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