Review: A Masterful WATCH ON THE RHINE at Arena Stage

Lillian Hellman's 1941 play WATCH ON THE RHINE isn't often produced, but it's certainly a relevant one in today's troubling times. As directed in the round by Jackie Maxwell at Arena Stage, it's probably one of the best examples of a scintillating, well-written script being brought to the stage by a uniformly excellent cast. The end result is a must-see production for the serious theatergoer.

Set in the Farrelly country house (elegantly and meticulously designed by Todd Rosenthal) about twenty miles from Washington, DC in 1940, well-dressed (costumes by Judith Bowden) outspoken and sometimes brash Fanny (Marsha Mason) eagerly awaits the arrival of her daughter Sara Müller (Lise Bruneau), her German-born husband Kurt (Andrew Long), and three children Joshua (Ethan Miller), Bodo (Tyler Bowman), and Babette (Lucy Breedlove) from tumultuous Europe. Fanny, Sara's lawyer brother David (Thomas Keegan), and their longtime maid Anise (Helen Hedman) haven't seen Sara in twenty years. Their return isn't all sunshine and roses though. Another houseguest - Teck de Brancovis, a Romanian count (J. Anthony Crane) - is particularly interested in what Kurt has been doing in Germany and other neighboring countries, especially after he finds a locked briefcase containing a gun and tens of thousands of dollars. Gruff but loving Kurt is an engineer turned active anti-fascist. The money he is carrying is intended to fund underground anti-Nazi operations. Teck de Brancovis, on the other hand, conspires with the very regime that Kurt is fighting against.

What starts out as a light drawing room comedy about a reunited family, turns into a serious drama in which ugly sociopolitical realities "over there" become all the more consequential for the gentile Farrelly family. When Kurt gets word that a fellow activist needs his help, Teck de Brancovis puts that effort in jeopardy and everyone must make some difficult decisions on what to do next. The decisions made on that afternoon will have real world consequences for everyone that will last far beyond that Spring afternoon.

Ms. Hellman does a masterful job with interweaving sociopolitical commentary and a drama-filled family-focused narrative in a way that contemporary playwrights could learn from. Even a side plot involving David's love interest (Marthe de Brancovis, well played by Natalia Payne) doesn't seem too out of place. While the scenario and related discussion is very much context-specific (the Nazi regime in early 1940s Europe), pointed remarks made about how America accepts political refugees (such as Kurt) are timely today and received applause on opening night. This play is not an old war horse that needs to be put away forever or only staged during a Hellman festival.

Nonetheless, a play such as this one benefits from a strong cast capable of ensuring the climactic twists and turns have the emotional impact Hellman probably intended. The Arena cast proves enormously capable in every way. Andrew Long and Lise Bruneau - DC theatre regulars with recent Broadway credits - give some of their best performances to date and match the tour-de-force that is Marsha Mason. Keegan and Hedman are most believable as close confidants from Sara's distant past. Crane's Brancovis is particularly conniving. While Bowman is slightly cloying as Bobo -Sara and Kurt's youngest with an affinity for big words and ideas - he, Miller, and Breedlove are successful in making the audience believe the children adore their parents. They also make clear they're accustomed to being uprooted and take it all in stride, which is necessary as the play reaches its climax.

Reach a climax it does, but the journey is pretty great too.

Running Time: Two hours and twenty minutes, including one intermission.

WATCH ON THE RHINE plays at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater - 1101 6th Street, SW in Washington, DC - through March 5, 2017. For tickets, call the box office at 202-488-3300 or purchase them online.

Photo: (L to R) Thomas Keegan as David Farrelly, Marsha Mason as Fanny Farrelly, Lucy Breedlove as Babette Müller and Lise Bruneau as Sara Müller in WATCH ON THE RHINE at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. By C. Stanley Photography.