Who's the Boss Around Here?

By Jonathan Jones

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

In Urinetown,  Office Lockstock tells Little Sally, “Nothing can kill a show like too much exposition.” To which Sally replies, “How about bad subject matter? Or a bad title even? That could kill a show pretty good.” Tony Kushner dives right in during the first scene of The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures preventing the aforementioned offending overuse of exposition, but on subject matter and a bad title, all is lost in this three and half hour exploration of the organization of longshoreman in New York City and utter trivialization of assisted suicide.

The success and brilliance of August: Osage County demystify Mr. Kushner’s attraction to the subject matter of this piece. Eugene O’Neill channeled his familial experience into Long Day’s Journey Into Night, but Tracy Letts’ experience of getting inspiration from the great playwrights of the past is what seems to have equally motivated Mr. Kushner. While listening to the entire cast yell at each other for nearly thirty minutes with expertly crafted quips and barbs is indeed entertaining, what lies beneath is beyond comprehension.

The patriarch of this family tried to commit suicide in the year preceding the events of the play, and now, he has decided to sell the family home and successfully complete the suicidal act thereafter. The adult children have convened in order to decide as a family whether or not he should commit suicide. Had he shared this desire with one trusted confidant and he or she had to deal with the gravity of his decision, this could be believable, but a family meeting in which no one seems really vested in the matter at hand (the writing, not the acting) defies logic. No matter how many times Gus tried to convey to each of his children why the specter of Alzheimer’s disease and his unending guilt over cheating his union brothers with less seniority out of a guaranteed lifetime income for work they were no longer required to do, the response from the children was never fully realized. There were moments where each “dealt” with the impending suicide through one emotional break or other, but the situation was so grave and so real from the start (he had slit his wrists the year before—this was no game) that I could never get over the lack of seriousness with which the threat was being handled. I didn’t mind the subject matter so much as I minded the way the subject matter was handled (or perhaps not handled is more accurate). 

After the disappointment of the characters not behaving in a truthful manner, I spent a good deal of the three and half hours wondering about the title of the piece. Who is the homosexual who is providing the guide? Two of the children are indeed homosexuals, but this was not their story so much as it was their father’s. Was Mr. Kushner the homosexual—is this his guide to these subjects? Or is it a guide for the homosexual in the audience to understand this world Mr. Kushner has created. I still don’t know. Bad title.

Make no mistake, the cast does an incredible job of breathing life into these wildly unlikable characters. I could dissect the merits of each, but it’s really not necessary. They are working under incredible duress and I am amazed by what they, in concert with director Michael Greif, were able to create in these circumstances (though I am infinitely curious about Mr. Greif’s attraction to geometry given his staging here, in Angels in America, Next to Normal, and Rent – it all starts to look similar and I want to know much more about why his aesthetic is such).

At the end of Act II of August: Osage County, the eldest daughter Barbara howls, “I’M RUNNING THINGS NOW!” The audience has craved someone taking charge in this family for so long that people actually cheered in response. The tepid laughter that followed Adam’s (ex-husband of the lesbian daughter in The Intelligent Homosexual…) drunken pronouncement of love for Empty (his ex wife) and his misguided attempt to 'run things' (see the play – I don’t want to give it all away) bespoke the ongoing allusion though more work (and editing!!) needs to be done here in order for this work to succeed in the way that August did.

The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures is currently running at The Public Theatre in a joint production with Signature Theatre Company in association with the Guthrie Theater as part of Signature’s ongoing season celebrating the works of Tony Kushner through June 12, 2011. Both parts of Angels in America are presented at Signature Theatre through Sunday, April 24, 2011 and The Illusion will play May 17 – July 10,  2011. Tickets at www.signaturetheatre.org

August: Osage County trailer: