A good Irish wake requires the following things: fighting, swearing and heavy alcohol consumption. All of those elements — and then some — are included in Broom Street Theater’s performance of “A Wake.”
The presumably modern play is set in a non-descript family home that houses the casket of a dead relative. Along with Miller Light and hors d’oeuvres, the family members remain in the corpse’s company until the upcoming funeral. Among many other dysfunctions, the family of the deceased suffers from alcoholism, religious fanaticism and anger management problems. As if the aforementioned issues would not suffice, the family also has a history of numerous obscure, untimely deaths.
The 13-person cast proved to be multitalented, with many actors playing two or three characters each. The overbearing mother-in-law Deirdre, played by Nancy Craig, walks around with the antlers of a deer permanently impaled into her chest (or her “rack,” pun intended) by an unfortunate car/deer incident. Along with her “woe is me” mentality, Craig maintains her good Catholicism throughout the production.
Undoubtedly the star of the play, Scott Rawson plays four different characters, one of them an old woman. Rawson was often hard to identify as the common actor of each character he played, which attests to his ability to immerse himself into any character. The troubled son of the deceased, Dillon, played by Collin Erickson, also delivered the convincing angry, sarcastic and narcissistic performance of a boy surrounded by death and dysfunction.
Riona, played by Christina Beller, serves as her mother Deirdre’s religious puppet and masterfully plays the part of a slightly neurotic young adult. With a hunched back and hysterical facial expressions, Beller successfully pokes fun at the struggles of the disabled. While her delivery was on point, there are some satirical lines that should not be crossed, such as mocking the handicapped.
The story occurs within the interactions between the immediate family members and their colorful shared history. The classic familial old biddies, played by Scott Rawson and Joseph Lutz, add an element of generational humor to the already satirical plot as they recall their slightly tainted versions of the family history. Stories of the bizarre deaths feature death by cheese, landmines and puddle-drowning, just to name a few. Although entertaining, the sheer implausibility of these stories became slightly exhausting after the first three recollections.
“A Wake” also highlights the tensions and traditions that occur following the death of a loved one. Family friends overwhelm the bereaved family with empty offers of assistance and comfort for the new widow, despite their pure intents. This play successfully solicits the laughter of its audience, though not adding much in the way of depth. Some social issues are alluded to within the dialogue; however, they are marginalized by the sarcastic manner in which they are presented.
The feisty plot of “A Wake” breached the boundaries of vulgarity with swearing, hints of anti-war sentiment and religious hypocrisy. This follows the trend of Broom Street Theater’s witty tendency to “push the envelope.”
Currently headquartered on Willy Street, Broom Street Theater looks forward to future renovation through continued local support and continues to indulge audiences’ senses of humor. The venue on Willy Street resembles an off-set garage with fewer than 60 seats and lighting on both the actors and the audience for a more personalized theatergoing experience.
While this intimacy may make some uncomfortable, it enables the actors to feed off the feedback from the audience. “A Wake” finishes this weekend at 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Broom Street Theater on 1119 Williamson St.
