Photo Credit: Jean-Gabriel Fernandez
Off the Wall Theatre’s seats were rearranged so the audience could surround the small stage where Vanya unfolds. Milwaukee’s most-eclectic small theater is now staging a new and modern adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s 1898 naturalist play, Uncle Vanya, which focuses on the woes of a family in the Russian countryside.
The Professor, here played by director Dale Gutzman, comes to life in his late wife’s estate, bringing with him his younger, beautiful second wife, Elena. Tensions are high as Sonya (Jenny Kosek), the Professor’s daughter from his first marriage, her uncle, Vanya, and the man she loves, Doctor Astrov (Randall Anderson), are all under the same roof.
The show makes use of a slow pace and thoughtful dialogue, coupled with haunting music and expert use of lighting to create a melancholy ambiance. The recreated living room of the estate, complete with a working fake window, grounds the characters in their environment. The audience is a fly on the wall as the events unfold with gripping realism.
As the title character, David Flores is in a league of his own, delivering a poignant performance. He accomplishes the feat of contributing to both the humor of the play and its saddest moments. Alicia Rice, as Elena, is a great surprise; despite being initially characterized only by her beauty, as the Professor’s young wife, she brings some of the most thoughtful insights, along with generous doses of personality and charm.
Each line of dialogue is bubbling with insight on human nature and on the mental processes that drive us. Vanya touches on the pointlessness of life, the inevitability of time, beauty, love, trust, family, social classes and more. Such plays are an easy miss, as the best script cannot save bad actors. Thankfully, Off the Wall has both a great script and amazing actors to carry it.
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Even if introspective pieces are not your cup of tea, Off the Wall’s Vanya could be the one to convert you. Vanya hits deep and will probably leave you teary-eyed and pondering the numerous lessons interspersed throughout the show.
Through Sunday, Sept. 29, at Off the Wall Theatre, 127 E. Wells St.
