ROTM's "Blood Wedding": Latin Intensity

◊◊◊◊ out of five.  Contains adult themes, sexuality and stylized violence. 

Federico Garcia Lorca, Spanish playwright, artist and activist is enjoying a modest revival of his most famous works in the coming weeks:  The House of Bernarda Alba plays next month at Towson University, and Blood Wedding finishes its run this weekend at Theatre Project, presented by Run of the Mill Theater Company.  Both works have a folk tale feel to them and a fiery Latin passion, and both are somber, sobering works.  Blood Wedding, staged by David D. Mitchell is a visually stunning, highly stylized production.  That it thrills with its truly theatrical presentation is a major understatement; it is the kind of staging that provokes thought and gives its audience something that simply can not be achieved on screen.

One knows from the get go that this will be a production that, and it will require an earnest commitment of the audience to bring as much to the table as the performers do - you simply can not sit passively to get the full benefit of this play.  While it is not traditional for American theatre, it revels in Hispanic cultural style and content.  The dialogue is almost rudimentary, its symbols clear and somewhat obvious.  It is full of religious and violent imagery, and comes perilously close to hyperbole.  But its simplicity masks an overall lovely (if dark) poetic sensibility.  The characters all wear their hearts on their sleeves, and very little of the play is shades of grey, but is rather sharply black or white.  The good guys are the good guys and the bad the bad. 

In brief, a widow, who has lost not only her husband but one of her sons to an evil local family, begrudgingly agrees to allow her remaining son to marry a local girl known to have consorted with another man from that evil family.  That man is married to another young woman, who desperately loves him, but he wants her quiet, in her place, and raising the 'fruits of his seed."  She realizes, of course, that her husband has eyes for the bride-to-be.  After getting the bride's father to agree to marry her son, the widow and father of the bride arrange the wedding, including the invitation of all parties involved.  The wedding happens without incident, but afterward, as the guests celebrate with dancing and drink, the bride runs off with her true love, her new husband in hot pursuit.  Act two concerns the effect of these events on the locals, and ends with tragic consequences.

The opening minutes absolutely thrill - vivid tableaus explain who is who wordlessly, and the opening speech by the widow is punctuated with choral reading of lines by the company.  At the same time, they perform one step at a time a passionate flamenco dance.  Natalia Monteleon's graceful, yet fiery choreography is equally thrilling, as there are a few segments of outright dancing in the midst of the piece.  Jessica Winfield's subtly dramatic lighting, J. Gavin Heck's superb sound and Laura Ridgeway's culturally evocative costumes all come together to create beautiful stage pictures throughout the evening.

Playing types and folkloric archetypes (wood cutters, "death" appearing as a beggar woman, etc.) is difficult, particularly when an audience may or may not be familiar with the conventions of such a specific sub-genre.  But director Mitchell has selected a company more than up to the rigorous demands of the script and his literate staging.  The ensemble actors (Beverley Shannon, Gina DiPeppe, Erica N. Johnson, Kelly Cardall and Tracy Dye) make a significant contribution, conveying several characters, even singing and dancing. Nancy Flores makes a chilling impression as the sickly Death as a Beggar Woman character, and Salima Chadly is terrific as the servant who is confidante to the Bride. 

James Caran, as Leonardo, the man who loves the bride, is boldly sexual and a domineering presence.  He makes it easy to see why the women in his life are so deeply enamored of Leonardo.  Balancing that is his nasty temper and self-absorption - just the dangerous mix that seems to lure women and then trap them.  Frank Vince gives a crafty performance as the father, who seems relieved to be getting rid of his troublesome daughter, while driving a hrad bargain for her betrothal.  Praem J. Phulwani is the Bridegroom is an interesting mix of a man who seems just the opposite of Leonardo, but comes to be equally deadly in his passion for the Bride.  He helps create tension and fireworks in every scene he is in - be it bargaining for his wife, begging his mother's approval or confronting the man who threatens (and ultimately ruins) his marriage.

The three central females also make quite an impression.  As Leonardo's wife, Jessie Dulaney has found the perfect way to convey the histrionics of the script, almost overplaying, which may even be what Lorca was going for.  Hers is a passionate, hysterical (not in the funny way) performance.  The Widowed Mother of the Groom is played with a genuine sense of old world wisdom and profound emotion by Lucie Poirier.  Her opening and closing speeches anchor this production with vivid dramatic line readings.  Karen Landry's Bride is almost maddeningly stoic, so much so that it is hard to warm to this cold woman.  That is, until you begin to realize that she is going along with what is expected of her while her true passions, both a lust and love for Leonardo, are boiling just underneath.  When the two forbidden lovers finally share a private moment, it is almost a relief.  The final moments, when she reappears, soaked in the blood of her husband and her lover, force her to return to an icy cold, detached state.  To watch that transformation is truly good acting on Ms. Landry's part.

Such stylized staging and content might wear thin for some, and in some ways Blood Wedding is a bit excessive.  But if you surrender any preconceived notions about theatre, this Blood Wedding offers many pleasures for serious theatre goers.

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