In Forward Theater Company’s production of “The Farnsworth Invention,” the audience meets Philo Farnsworth (Nicholas Harazin), a boy genius from Indian Creek, Utah, and follows him as he attempts to invent the electronic television.
The play was written by Aaron Sorkin, and right off the bat its similarities to Sorkin’s screenplay “The Social Network” are hard to ignore. Both protagonists are fellow geniuses with awkward social habits locked in legal battles against businessmen trying get a piece of the patent. And, of course, the tone of the dialogue is quintessentially Sorkin, with quick, pointed exchanges.
Despite having the same ingredients, the play departs from its resemblance to “The Social Network” in interesting ways. Farnworth’s rival, David Sarnoff (Michael Huftile) is the founder of RCA. He portrayed a complex character with motivations beyond just making money.
Instead of demonizing Sarnoff, a businessman who attempts to steal Farnworth’s idea for the TV, the play provides flashbacks into the man’s life that frame him more as a competitive, success-driven man, rather than a scheming parasite. The complexity of the main characters made the play captivating. Despite the set, which never changed, the show was engaging and hit with quick, witty dialogue that served to inform the audience or draw an emotional response.
The dialogue was always interesting and informative, but at times came off as contrived. Actors often had to take a breath in the middle of reciting Sorkin-penned written lines without consideration to the confines of an average human’s lung capacity. Likewise, there was an overabundance of swearing in the play that often felt forced and out of place. The narrator spoke calmly throughout the play but implanted “fuck” into sentences with the dexterity of a surgeon using a dull axe.
The actors did a fantastic job, despite having to read a script that sometimes left them light-headed. With a cast of just 16, many of Forward Theater Company’s actors took on multiple roles to cover a script written for 70 characters. The company did well working with this many roles, but it was sometimes difficult to keep track of the characters needed to follow to fully understand the plot. Things got especially confusing when the same actor (Alistair Sewell) played young Farnsworth and young Sarnoff within minutes.
The company did a great job bringing the production to life. The set, the face of a brick building, was convincing and utilized to the fullest as a setting for parties, speeches and late 19th century Russia. With just some chairs and a couple wooden tables, the same set transformed into many different settings that were simple enough to be ignored. The actors were so immersed in their fictional environments that it was easy to take the small step away from disbelief and join them in a basement in Utah or an elementary school.
In the end, “The Farnsworth Invention” left the audience thoroughly entertained and much more informed about a piece of modern technology that is easy to take for granted. With a talented cast of convincing actors, Forward Theater Company delivered on a tough script with rewarding results.
4 stars out of 5
“The Farnsworth Invention” runs at Madison’s Overture Center through Nov. 20. For more information, go to www.overturecenter.com.
