Review: SANCTUARY CITY at Berkeley Repertory

2018 Pulitzer Prize winner Martyna Majok (Cost of Living) paints a bleak, gritty and totally authentic portrayal of the effects of immigration inequalities on two young Dreamers fighting to establish a life for themselves in Berkeley Rep's new production of Sanctuary City. Fresh off a critically hailed run in NYC, Sanctuary City is set in 2006, a tense time post 9/11 when America war on terrorism had tragic effects on illegal aliens trapped in a web of inaction, helplessness, and fear.

The first part of this one act establishes the relationship between B (Hernán Angulo) and G (Maria Victoria Martinez), friends since the third grade and both struggling with family, school and social issues foisted upon them by their circumstances. B's mother brought him here as a child and they've overstayed their visa making them illegals. The girl doesn't have it much better, escaping to the safety of B's bedroom to escape another of her mother's violent boyfriends. She's eventually naturalized and can proceed with her dream of college, while B is left to only fantasize about an 'America' in which he has a role.

Their patter as they grow even closer is often combative, yet affectionate. Director David Mendizabal, scenic designer David Reynoso, lighting designer Cha See, and sound designer Fan Zhang create the allusion of passing time through flickering red lights, dramatic sound effects and repeated dialogue ala Groundhog Day. B and G are rehearsing a prepared relationship, going over small details they may be quizzed on.

All goes well until G goes off to school and reneges on their green card marriage. Three and a half years go by with no word. The remainder of the play drops the earlier directorial wizardry in favor of allowing the fireworks to come from Majok's searing dialogue and the fine acting by Martínez, Angulo and late addition Kim Fischer as B's gay partner. The threesome has hard choices to make: does B opt for love over an arrangement that may open new opportunities, will G follow through with her agreement?

Sanctuary City puts specific human faces on an often-abstract reality facing millions of people surviving in the shadows of America. Empathizing with Majok's B and G draws us into their world and exposes a dark underbelly of American injustice.

Sanctuary City runs through August 14, 2022. Tickets available at www.berkeleyrep.org or by calling 510-647-2949.

Photo credit: Kevin Berne

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