Review: BURIED CITIES at Source Festival

I am in two minds about Buried Cities, currently running as part of Cultural DC's Source Festival for new writing. My state of confusion arises directly from the script's two competing story lines. An unsubtle debate on guns fights for the audience's attention with a beautiful story about gods and father figures. I found myself anticipating the end of the former and hoping to see more of the latter.

The main plot follows Louis and Maya, a newly-pregnant couple whose lives are upended when they are held at gunpoint during a home robbery. Marital tension arises when each adopts a different coping mechanism. Louis books an impromptu trip to Crete and Maya brings home a gun to help protect their home. Both spouses accuse each other of changing and acting like a new person. The difficulty here is that the audience does not know what Maya and Louis were like before the robbery, lending little weight to the constant accusations that the spouses lob at each other. While Yesenia Iglesias as Maya and McCaul Baggett as Louis give good performances, their characters' unrelenting frustration is difficult to watch.

The other problem facing this part of the script is that not much actually happens in Maya and Louis's storyline, turning their scenes together into abstract discussions about guns. They terrify Louis and make Maya feel powerful and sexy. But we never get deeper than that. Perhaps this is a harsh assessment of Jennifer Fawcett's script. But only a week has passed since 50 innocent people lost their lives in a mass shooting in an Orlando gay club. Instead of feeling topical, the debate rings hollow in the face of real life tragedy.

There is still a lot to love about Buried Cities. Frank Cevarich is delightfully petulant and hopeful as Brandon, Louis's teenage nephew. Brandon's obsession with a first-person shooter video game reveals an unexpectedly complex character. Oscillating between swagger and sheepishness, Brandon struggles with the loss of his stepfather and his own complex relationships with guns. The game is brought to life beautifully by Roc Lee's sound design and Mary Keegan's lighting, and the play between reality and game brings a much-needed sense of lightness to the production. Lee Gerstenhaber brings equal parts magic and pain to her role as a mysterious video game player who later transforms into a fully realized character.

Buried Cities holds a lot of promise. It's unfortunate that its run has coincided with a time when potential Audience members are being pummeled with news coverage and gun control debates. If you are looking for solace from the news, this is not the show for you. I do look forward to seeing Jennifer Fawcett's future work and seeing what other interesting pieces are programmed at this year's Source Festival.

Photo Credit: Teresa Wood Photography

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