Photos by Topher Lyons
Labor Day weekend seems a strange time to put on a play about three animated and wildly opinionated people locked in a hotel room discussing, of all things, rewriting the constitution of the United States.
But then, these are strange times, and no one is more interested in pointing that out than playwright Lauren Gunderson, who is known to poke fun at conservatives, liberals, moderates and well, pretty much anyone who can’t or won’t do something about the political and social urgencies right in front of their faces.
And, it must be said, The Taming is a strange play. Reeking of sarcastic comments that hark back to Shakespeare’s Shrew, and reflecting the disguised feminism of prior historical periods as well as the more in-your-face version of our own era, the script is a bit of a mess. It jumps from an improbable first-act gathering on the eve of a contemporary Miss America pageant to a second-act crazy re-imagining of a discussion among three of America’s founding fathers as they framed the original constitution. Three actors play all the roles in each act.
Thankfully, By the Sea Productions in Morro Bay has taken the farce at the heart of the play’s messiness and given us a one-weekend-only staged reading that in the main allows the focus to remain on Gunderson’s words and humorous commentary on the state of our disagreements as a less-than-civil society at the moment.
Under the direction of Jean Miller, the three-woman cast—Andrea Bowers, Sarah Colwell and Piper Fedrow—fiercely portray their characters’ wildly varied political viewpoints with gung-ho gusto.
Miller allows her animated trio to roam a mostly-bare set as they sometimes defy the usual constraints of a staged reading—declaiming memorized passages, donning faux colonial frocks and wigs (costumes well-done by Melissa Karas), and for one lucky actress lip-syncing all the words to The Star-Spangled Banner under a spotlight wearing a sparkling evening gown and tiara (lighting and sound well-done by Samvel Gottlieb).
It’s certainly entertaining, especially if you can handle extended and sometimes scorching exchanges on topics like slavery, compromise, and educated white males. Huzzah!
The Taming plays the weekend of September 4-6 only.