Arizona State University Department of Theatre's Los Alamos at The Lyceum Theatre
(out of 
)Mark S.P. Turvin
(home office) (602) 912-0117
I can be reached for comment via e-mail at: mspt@goldfishpublishers.com
Reviewed 4/29/99
(out of )Two of the modern driving forces of American Theatre, Pulitzer Prize-winner Lanford Wilson, and multi-Tony Award-winner Marshall W. Mason, have given Arizona and ASU the chance to see the fruits of their latest collaboration, Los Alamos. This production, a staged reading with generous blocking but limited set and lighting, gives audience members a chance to see what goes into creating a Lanford Wilson original. The audience on Thursday's opening night were given a special treat, since they witnessed what will probably be a very early draft of the 35th Wilson/Mason collaboration, with little resemblance to what will become the final draft. Since this was a staged reading, and the actors remained on book for most of the evening, this review will only concentrate on the text itself.
The play centers on a couple of the "engineers" (physicists,
really) and others involved in the Manhattan Project. The splitting
of the atom and Native American's have been a Wilson interest
in some of his scripts, including Angels Fall, and these
themes are here in full force, with the history of the creation
of the bomb and descriptions of Navajo culture mixed together
to form an interesting historical observation. The only things
wrong with this show, though, are the lack of any recognizable
humans in the cast of five, or any of Wilson's consistent use
of his wonderful storytelling. What Mr. Mason brings to the boards
is a political tract that allows stereotypes and representations
to debate for long periods of time about the pros and cons of
nuclear energy, while there's a bit of personal and professional
intrigue thrown in to attempt to link these protracted and weighted
discussions.
When I interviewed Mr. Wilson
for Back Stage Newspapers before he arrived in Phoenix,
he assured me that this was a play that was just as much about
friendship as about the creation of the bomb, but what I experienced
on Thursday night had little to do about friendship or intrigue,
and more about the science and ethics of the nuclear age. One
character, Hank, is an obvious stand-in for the "scientist
without borders," while another character, Tony, is the "modern
Native American" with links to his heritage, but no romanticism
about their beliefs. Equally undefined are Ryan, a young physicist
with amazing talents, and the Russian physicist and realist, Peter,
who foresees the coming arms race and its inevitability. Even
worse, the one female character, Irene, the Russian wife of Peter,
seems only to exist to allow some of the spy intrigue to seem
intriguing, which it ultimately does not.
Rather than the rich Wilsonian dialogue and deep, three dimensional
characters and relationships that we've come to expect from this
talented writer, we are instead given cardboard representations
and self-indulgent, philosophical ramblings. There is a definite
basis for a play here, but three dimensional characters need to
be introduced into the setting before it can fly.
It must be noted that this is a script that Mr. Wilson has brought
back from the shelf, where it has been tinkered with, on and off,
for over twenty years. It's ironic, since there are many youthful
problems with the script that Mr. Wilson and his maturity should
be able to correct. With the many revisions and wise cuttings
of which Mr. Wilson and Mr. Mason are capable, this could be a
solid script that manages to weave together the correct elements
of history and humanity.
For those who were lucky enough to witness this work-in-progress,
and see a step in the evolution of Mr. Wilson's work, enjoying
the historical significance of the situation should be enough
to keep away the disappointment at the many missing elements of
this first-draft.
Production Details:
Los Alamos by Lanford Wilson
Arizona State University Department of Theatre
The Lyceum Theatre, Tempe
April 29 May 1, 1999