The Rep’s ‘Yankee Tavern’ Questions the Truth

Playwright StevenDietz sets one of his newest works, YankeeTavern, in a dilapidated New York bar fiveyears after the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001. When hisfather died of a questionable suicide, a young international studies gradstudent named Adam (Brian Vaughn) inherited the titular tavern, and now servesa clientele that seems composed exclusively of his dad’s old friend, Ray.Played by guest actor Will Zahrn, the aging barfly shares the gruff frustrationof the late-George Carlin and delivers an unrelenting rant of conspiracytheories ranging from the staged moon landing and the JFK assassination to the9/11 attacks.

While the argumentsare compelling, Ray’s diatribes dominate the first half of the production,eclipsing the opportunity for Vaughn and guest actor Marti Gobel to create asubtle, genuine relationship between their respective characters, Adam andJanet, who are engaged. Making the most of a small ration of dialogue, Repacting company member Torrey Hanson portrays a mysterious patron named Palmerwith calm severity, an artistic choice that accentuates the weight of theinformation he shares with the other characters, information that reconstructsconspiracy as reality. While YankeeTavern can be a challenge to follow, the play isn't really about what didor didn't happen; it's about the torment of uncertainty, a truth of life thatall of us can relate to.

The Milwaukee Rep’s Yankee Tavern continues through Jan. 31at the Quadracci Powerhouse Theater.