“Body Awareness”
Empire Stage
1140 N. Flagler Dr., Ft. Lauderdale
(954) 678-1496
islandcitystage.org, empirestage.com smarttix.com
Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00pm, Sundays at 5:00pm, through April 7.
$30.00
It’s been a long time since I was blown away by an evening of theater. Empire Stage’s production of the 2009 Drama Desk Award-winning “Body Awareness” is a perfect storm of excellent writing, a strong ensemble, and adept direction. Even the set design is perfect.
The play is set in the fictional small town of Shirley, Vermont, where Phyllis, a college professor organizes Body Awareness Week (with topics that range from a dance troupe of refugee Palestinian children to an eating disorder
seminar). She lives with her partner Joyce, a high school social studies teacher, and Joyce’s 21-year-old son Jarod, from a prior marriage. Jarod, a self-described autodidact, shows several symptoms of Asperger’s Syndrome (a form of autism), but he refuses to seek treatment.
The family hosts Frank, one of the artists who is in town for the event. Frank is a middle-aged photographer whose artistic photos of nude women offend Phyllis. His presence exacerbates the already existing tension between the three family members, and when Joyce contemplates posing for one of Frank’s pictures, it threatens her relationship with Phyllis. Meanwhile, Jarod asks Frank for advice on how to attract women. In a climactic scene, his misinterpretation of Frank’s advice puts the family on the edge of crisis.
Clay Cartland is exceptional as Jarod the man-child. His spot-on interpretation of a young man struggling to cope in a society he doesn’t completely comprehend is nothing short of breathtaking. Janet Weakly takes the role of Joyce, a familiar mother/wife who is trying to keep all the roles in her life spinning, and adds an inner strength and depth of character that a lesser actor might have over-looked. Merry Jo Cortada does an excellent job of adding a layer of vulnerability to her interpretation of Phyllis, a feminist lesbian college professor. A scene late in the play, in which she shares a snack with her damaged stepson, is almost heartbreaking as you catch a glimpse into the woman she hides from others. David Gordon as the visiting artist Frank, who triggers Jarod’s life-changing decision, avoids the cliché of playing the role as a macho outsider. By taking the character in a subtler direction, Gordon opens up the interpretation of the other characters in the play.
The Tony Award-nominated Michael Leeds’ direction is phenomenal, allowing each character to unfold like a flower, while keeping the action moving forward. Michael McClain’s set design is spot-on and makes excellent use of the small space.
One of the themes in the play is how the artist as an outsider interprets his or her subject and how we, as the viewer, interpret the subject of an artist’s work. “Body Awareness” also reflects this. The characters to which you most relate will affect how you relate to the play. Playwright Annie Baker is an outsider observing these characters in a world she has created. It is a testament to her success in constructing this world that we as outsiders can relate to each character.
The small theater seats maybe 30 people and if this production isn’t sold out every night there’s something wrong in this world.
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