Riveting "Statements After an Arrest" at Run of the Mill

           The theatre goes dark. Cautious whispers are heard, followed by the throaty laugh of a woman. A blanket is illuminated downstage, and a couple in a passionate embrace rolls on to it. So begins the riveting drama Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act by playwright Athol Fugard, which is currently part of Run of the Mill Theatre's South African Play Festival at The Theatre Project.

          According to program notes, the impetus for the play was a series of six photographs published in an Afrikaans newspaper of a white librarian caught with a colored school principal as lovers. The time was during the oppression of apartheid, when the Immorality Act of 1950 made it a criminal offense for a white person to have sexual relations with a person of a different racial classification. This is not necessarily a factual account of those persons, but rather a dramatic interpretation of events. The play depicts the final tryst between the secret lovers, and during that time, we find out what brought them together, and the ironic freeing of their emotions all while being held captive by the law of the land. Fugard's language is at once simple, straightforward and beautifully poetic, with vivid imagery helping to create a fuller understanding of these people, their environs and their ultimate demise. The play is full of passion, both physical and emotional, and should, by all that is right, reinforce that the abolishment of apartheid was the best thing for all concerned. It should also wake up a few minds about the whole concept of inter-racial relations period. It should be noted that the play presents both sides of the legal argument equally, and without obvert judgment, thus forcing the audience to make some decisions of their own. Don't let this heady, studious interpretation keep you from this wonderful piece of theatre, though, because Fugard has also constructed an entertaining work.

           Set designer Janine Vreatt as created a sparse environment, suggesting rather than directly recreating a library, with the downstage playing space vaguely an office and spare backroom, fit for an illicit affair, yet not dominating the space so the focus remains on the action. Similarly, Bob Dover, lighting designer, has created a shadowy look to the place, with very specific lighting cues to really help the audience focus. And twice during the production, those photographs are recreated with a flash of light, a sound of a flash bulb going off (sound by Max Garner) and very specific movements by the actors. It is in those 6 brief seconds that this already stunning production electrifies and does what only theatre can do - it captivates, moves, and enthralls. Laura Ridgeway's costumes are appropriately sexy, given the context of most of the play, and prove well-chosen as the lovers continually dress and undress.

          Director Jenny Tibbels clearly knew what she was doing when assembling this design team, but it is her staging that makes the evening everything it can be. The 75 minute running time flies by, as she has everything going at a brisk, urgent pace. She creates wonderful stage pictures with her actors clearly comfortable with each other and their surroundings. The recreation of the pictures, as stated, is magnificent, but there are other wonderful (and troubling) tableaus - the lovers intertwined on the floor; the desperation they feel created by both tight proximity around a chair and a book, and by distance as they separate to collect their feelings; and most chillingly, the frozen moment of the lovers, in an embrace, caught wide-eyed in a glaring light. Ms. Tibbels has done some of the surest direction in Baltimore this year.

          All three actors in this play are top notch, and each gives the play exactly what it needs - three distinct points of view and emotion. In the smallest role, though certainly only in size not in importance, of Detective-Sergeant Du Preez, Chris Graybill is a commanding presense, cocky and full of the arrogance a man can get when divorcing himself from all emotions except pride at knowing the law is on his side. As he haughtily recounts a report by a witness that led to this arrest, his semi-smiles, like a cat playing with its prey. His smug delivery both enrages and enlightens, as we come to understand the power of the whites in that time not too long ago. Corin B. Self plays the appropriately named Errol Philander, the colored man of intelligence, held back only by the injustice of the laws which he must follow. Self's performance is very low key - he rarely varies his volume or cadence - but he comes across with great meaning, not a droning whiner. He is mesmerizing, and is particularly good with the more poetic passages given to his character. It is easy to see why his white woman lover is so under his spell. That woman, Freida Joubert, played by Courtney Weber, is full of life and passion, selfishly questioning the rules, sometimes without regard for her lover's sacrifice. Weber is equally mesmerizing, but for just the opposite reasons. Her performance, like her character, fluctuates between loud reckless abandon and quiet fear. It is the look in her eyes at the very moment of police discovery that haunts me still as I write this, some two days after seeing it. Any theatre that sticks with you that specifically and for that length of time, is theatre worth attending. And you should definitely attend this tale.

Statements plays in repertory with another Fugard play, Sizwe Bansai is Dead, which shall be reviewed next week. Run of the Mill Theatre is offering BroadwayWorld.com readers an exclusive discount - $16.00 tickets for just $10.00. You must mention "BroadwayWorld.com" at the time of reservation or at the box office. The Theatre Project box office number is 410.752.8558.

PHOTOS: TOP: Corin B. Self and Courtney Weber; BOTTOM: (L to R) Corin B. Self, Courtney Weber, and Chris Graybill. Photos courtesy of Run of the Mill Theatre.

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