BWW Reviews: Next Act's JENNY SUTTER Features Exceptional Feminine Touches

The feminine touch explores multiple wounds from war and opens Next Act Theatre's Silver Anniversary season this past September weekend in the Midwest premiere of Welcome Home, Jenny Sutter. Written by award winning playwright Julie Marie Myatt to herald the directorial debut of Milwaukee actor Deborah Staples, the one-hour 40 minute, no intermission performance revisits a Marine returning to the States after serving in Iraq, which represents another woman on stage, an African American soldier, the vulnerable Jenny Sutter.

From the beginning, Next Act's production turns routine theater statistics on exceptional end. Women directors, playwrights and technicians (Scenic Designer Maureen Chavez-Kruger and Costume Designer Dana Brzezinski) represent less than 20 percent of theater personnel in the country, and so a production showcasing these feminine talents deserves attention. Milwaukee represents a city renowned for welcoming home women to the stage in every area.

And what an arena to inaugurate a company's anniversary season. Myatt's poignant, quirky story reflects a woman Marine, who served in an armed forces where few woman don these prestigious battle boots. Women were only recently allowed to enter combat roles in any of the United States armed forces, which is what happens to the heroine in Myatt's play, Jenny Sutter, an African American who represents an even smaller percentage of Marines. The marvelous revelation in this particular production resonates with how the remaining "shells;" physical or emotional, or the actual bullet shell, of all wounded people, received from either a personal tragedy or war, could be healed through compassion.

Credit to Staples for directing a production dominated by intense characters the audience needs to perceive as believable and likeable, a formidable task in this endearing production. Her cadre of experienced actors, John Kishline, Tami Workentin, Ryan Schalbach, Deborah Clifton and a cameo by Nate Press who surround Chelsea D. Harrison's tough Jenny.

Kishline's scarred Buddy affectionally demonstrates patience with his affable concern, and also by revealing through his $9.99 preacher's license sermons that speak with homespun wisdom. Meanwhile, Workentin's wild and crazy Louse illustrates how any personality battles with their "wants" that can easily turn into addictions during a lifetime. Add in Schalbach's introverted Donald, who inadvertantly touches the audience's heart when he finally connects to Jenny as she decides to leave her new found friends.

All the action happens in Slab City, perhaps too conveniently Marine base ruins located somewhere in the Mojave Desert. Scenic Designer Chavez-Kruger imaginatively captures the essence of the refuse cluttered town using rough wood planks, old tires and steel hub caps. Similar to Workentin's tiered chartruese sequin covered skirt mismatched with an endless variety of odd tops that defines Louise's volatile personality to perfection.

To add another element into this thought provoking play, recent statistics regarding the Iraq conflict/war indicate that a greater percentage of veterans age 24-27, upwards to 35, often commit suicide when returning home after surviving combat. Marines taught to professionally wound or kill on the field must then revert to a civilian life and can be expected to adjust to what? A few Christmases ago, a veteran Marine murdered his wife on suburban Wauwatosa streets, almost forgotten now by the community, to illustrate this tragedy. One savvy comment suggests, "All servicemen return home wounded, with or without visible hurt and a warm welcome home," Events which certainly require a time of transition and healing. What does society do with these US warriors as they attempt to heal?

Jenny Sutter confronts what Jenny considers to be an aftereffect rendering her "unwhole" from her military service, a deformity that challenges her body image. When doing so, the Next Act production revisits the value needed to be placed on these frequently ignored and marginalized populations, tucked away in desert towns and central city tinder housing, or lonely living rooms, to remind the audience everyone requires compassion, understanding, and most of all to hear those three little words when welcomed home: I love you, which Jenny Sutter finally does, giving her the courage to face a further journey..Tender care from the people who surround these people when they rebuff the wages of wars, wounds acquired abroad and on emotional home fronts, to conquer personal fears that plague each individual. And in the process create future heroes and heroines.rebecca.moder

Next Act Theatre presesnts Welcome Home, Jenny Sutter at 255 South Water Street through October 12. For information or tickets, please call: 414.278.5930 or www.nextact.org

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