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The Quality of Life
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Metcalf, Williams, Bakula
Photo by Michael Lamont
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By Ben Miles
*Critic's Choice*
Jane Anderson has had her hands full lately. The award-winning playwright and screenwriter (Looking for Normal, How to Make an American Quilt) has written and directed The Quality of Life--now in its World Premiere at The Geffen Playhouse's Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater, in Westwood, through November 18. With a stellar cast of four and sky-high production values (Francois-Pierre Couture's impressive set design is enhanced by Jason Thompson's lighting and Karl Lundeberg's sound engineering), this Geffen-commissioned production is well-suited to the intimate Skirball Kenis playing space.
Dinah (JoBeth Williams, in a simple and moving portrayal) suggests to her stoic husband, Bill (Scott Bakula, lending a rich and emotionally complex characterization), that they take a respite from their lives on an Ohio farm to visit her California cousin, Jeanette (Laurie Metcalf, in an outlandishly appealing performance). Jeanette and her longtime matrimonial mate, Neil (Dan Boutsikaris' embodiment of this role is a tribute to naturalism in the theater), have lost their No. Cal. abode in a devastating firestorm. What's more, Neil is the victim of terminal cancer. Nevertheless, Dinah feels that a westward journey would be a pick-me-up event for both couples. After all, Bill and Dinah are still recovering from the horrific demise of their college-age daughter.
Anderson's play allows so-called red state values to be juxtaposed with blue state sentiments, as Bill and Dinah encounter a culture clash of sorts as they arrive at Neil and Jeannette's makeshift digs: a yurt (it's a tent like apparatus used by Mongolian nomads). Though the players are never reduced to stereotypes--each character is a full-fleshed incarnation-- we are allowed a microcosmic view of the differing mindsets involved in the push/pull dynamics of liberal versus conservative America. Bill, for instance, finds it objectionable that Neil makes use of marijuana to deal with his deadly disease. Pot smoking is only one area in which the two men do not see eye-to-eye, however.
Bigger questions and greater choices are also under examination in this two-hour slice of American life. But, when death is at issue, is it possible for the red/blue political and philosophical chasm to meld into a purple hue of mutual compassion and understanding? The Quality of Life is a bittersweet exploration of the mores of our modern-day nation. Take a look; it's a fulfilling and authentically pictured experience.
The show plays Tuesday- Sunday at 7:30 p.m. Matinees are on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. For reservations dial (213)365 - 3500. For more information, visit www.geffenplayhouse.com. The Geffen Playhouse is located at 10886 La Conte Avenue, Westwood.
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