Playwright: Polly Stenham. At: Redtwist Theatre, 1044 W. Bryn Mawr. Phone: 773-728-7529; $25-$27, Runs through: Aug. 14
It has taken an unconscionably long time for Polly Stenham's That Face to make it to Chicago. Stenham's 2007 drama generated loads of publicity when it debuted at London's Royal Court Theatre, in part because she was 19 years old at the time.
Another aspect of That Face that many class-conscious British critics commented on was the fact that Stenham chose to focus on a wealthy family whose wretched lives were falling apart. The Chicago premiere of That Face at Redtwist Theatre is a socioeconomic contrast to its other repertory show, an extension of Tracy Letts' Bug, but the issues dredged up by Stenham are similarly disturbing.
That Face focuses on 19-year-old dropout Henry, who has been taking care of his alcoholic and prescription drug-addled mother, Martha (who probably has mental-health issues, too). There's a disturbing hint that the two have been involved in an incestuous relationship, since Martha constantly dotes on her son as her "little Russian soldier."
Henry's sister, Mia, comes home from boarding school following an ugly hazing incident gone wrong. That prompts their father, Hugh, to leave his new family and career in Hong Kong to deal with the family he essentially disposed of back in the United Kingdom.
Like many young playwrights, Stenham goes a bit overboard in ratcheting up the depravity of her often very unlikable characters (even including an onstage urination scene toward the end). However, Stenham creates plenty of compelling drama as she shows two teenagers who are in over their heads in taking care of their moody mother.
Director Michael Colucci's intimate production for Redtwist largely succeeds with strong and visceral performancesexcept in the case of Jacqueline Grandt as Martha.
On one hand it's good that Grandt doesn't overplay the drunkenness. However, Grandt really could have played things bigger, especially when we come to see how passive-aggressively destructive Martha can be. (It also would have helped if Grandt's British accent didn't evaporate five minutes into the play.)
Nick Vidal and Rae Gray make for a dynamic brother and sister team of an over-stressed Henry and very practical Mia, while Lindsay Leopold is a particularly nasty piece of work as Mia's hazing co-conspirator, Izzy.
Andrew J. Pond shows plenty of indignation as Hugh, appropriately getting very little remorse in the process. Page Weaver understandably gets plenty of audience sympathy as the largely silent hazing victim, Alice.
With so much dysfunction happening on stage, That Face isn't exactly the kind of show to see if you need a pick-me-up from a hard day at work. But aside from one key performance, Redtwist shows how its actors are great at stirring up the depths of their characters' demons and tough situations.