Terry Morgan
When one reads the title The Night of the Iguana, one hopes that it will be one of those Fifties flicks about radiation creating a giant iguana terrorizing hapless humans. But, alas, it is not so. It is instead a 1961 play by Tennessee Williams, which was shortly thereafter made into a film by John Huston starring a miscast Richard Burton. There is an iguana in it, but it feasts on no screaming villagers and is largely there to be symbolic. My experiences with both the play and film in the past have been somewhat disappointing, but when I heard that Boston Court Pasadena was going to be producing a revival, I was intrigued to see what that esteemed theater company could do with this work. The answer is: they’ve put on the best version of this show I’ve seen, with superb lead performances, but even with all of that going for it, the inherent problems with the play itself prove insurmountable.
It’s 1940 at the rundown Costa Verde Hotel on the west coast of Mexico. World War II is happening, but former Episcopal Reverend Shannon (Riley Shanahan) is more concerned with avoiding the complaints of the Baptist schoolteacher tour group he’s currently leading. He’s dragged them to one of his favorite haunts, where he hopes the hotel manager Maxine (Julanne Chidi Hill) will sufficiently distract them, allowing to him to evade the wrath of Miss Fellowes (Ann Noble), who wants to get him fired. In the midst of this situation arrives Hannah (Jully Lee) and her 97-year-old father, Nonno (Dennis Dun). They’ve traveled the world for many years together, making a living respectively by painting watercolors for tourists and writing poems, but they’ve fallen upon hard times and Shannon persuades Maxine to let them stay free for one night. Unfortunately, Maxine has her romantic sights set on Shannon, and his sudden interest in Hannah complicates her plans.
Shanahan elevates the character of Shannon – a “man of God on vacation” – through the skill of his performance. What could be an unconvincing mix of problems (alcoholism, loss of faith, statutory rape) on the page becomes a believable (if not necessarily sympathetic) and complicated person in his committed portrayal. Hannah is the heart of this story, and Lee plays her beautifully, the quiet desperation of the character’s current life masking her inner strength. Hill captures Maxine’s various traits very well, from brassy bravado to quiet fear, and Dun brings perplexed dignity to his role as the failing Nonno. Noble adds more shades to her very funny performance than may have been present in the script, but they’re all welcome, as otherwise Fellowes is sort of a one-note shouting role.
Director Jessica Kubzansky gets terrific, detailed work from her actors, and Tesshi Nakagawa’s set design of a wooden deck and hotel rooms with see-through walls and thatched roofs creates an appropriately fragile and impermanent vibe for the show. Kubzansky pulls off a strong theatrical moment at the end of the first half of the play, in which a storm arrives – an event which represents God to Shannon – and the visuals and sound and performance all coalesce perfectly.
In the press release, this play is referred to as “a neglected classic.” I wouldn’t go that far. Williams had a tendency to be overwrought in some of his works, and while I enjoyed the first half of this show, the second part was heavy sledding. It’s a mixed bag, writing wise, but I appreciated the opportunity to see its best qualities shine. I was surprised how funny a lot of this play is; I didn’t remember it that way. In any case, this production brings out its humor, which was nice. It’s also a show in which people say, “Great Caesar’s ghost!” and in which being “defrocked” is a shocking status. I wasn’t really sure that Nazis needed to make an appearance, but they’re not in the show very much.
This is a production for Williams fans and people who appreciate great acting. I’m glad I got to see The Night of the Iguana done this well, even if I think the play itself isn’t ultimately a success.
The Night of the Iguana is presented by and at Boston Court Pasadena and runs through October 19. Tickets are available here.
Pauline Adamek
