Review: OR, BY LIZ DUFFY ADAMS at Santa Fe Playhouse

It’s amazing that the current production of Or, a play directed by Zoe Burke at Santa Fe Playhouse, was a second choice to the playwright’s Born With Teeth, playing in repertory right now (review to follow in a few weeks). I have yet to see Born With Teeth, but was thrilled to see Or, this week.

Or, tells the tale of Aphra Behn (Breshaun-Birene Joyner), an imprisoned spy and aspiring playwright. The action takes place in London, during the Restoration period, but the playbill says it also “plays off the echoes between the late 1660s, the late 1960s and the present.”  Based on a real person, Aphra Behn is considered by many to be the first professional female playwright.

The dialogue is at times Shakespearian and at other times quite contemporary, which makes for a very interesting and intriguing mix. Behn is in jail after a botched overseas spy mission where her partner is killed. She is visited by a masked stranger (Patrick Janssen) intent on making her his mistress. Behn seems game to go along with the flirtation, especially if it will help her get out of jail, and allow her to get on with her career as a writer.

Much to her surprise, the masked stranger turns out to be King Charles II. He frees her from jail and she takes up residence with Maria, her handmaid (Chloe Carson), to begin work on a new play. The rest of the action devolves into a farce, with Janssen and Carson taking on multiple roles, including a well to do producer, a face from the past and a sought-after actor. All do their best to interrupt Behn and keep her from her play.

Full disclosure, parlor comedies with lots of entrances and exits, mistaken identities and bawdy humor usually leave me yawning, but this one is so cleverly crafted, both through the dialogue and the expert character development of all three actors, that I was thoroughly engaged and entertained. The three-person cast committed completely to the crazy and somewhat nonsensical plot, which adds to the show’s natural buoyancy and appeal.

Joyner’s embodiment of Behn makes one want to learn more about this little-known historic figure; she is sexy, strong, independent and incredibly forward-thinking. Joyner’s line delivery – her very voice – has a commanding quality that demands complete attention. She is a fantastic addition to the ever-growing ensemble of actors the Playhouse is employing these days.

That goes for Janssen and Carson as well – Janssen’s William and Charles both have an air of giddy goofiness that begs Behn to dominate them. Carson’s three characters are quite diverse and so fully realized that even if there were no costume changes, one could still know immediately which character she was embodying.

Or, is playing at Santa Fe Playhouse in Rep with Born with Teeth March 6 – 31. Tickets are available at https://santafeplayhouse.org/.  Support this daring company and live theater in Santa Fe.

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