Supple in Combat
Drama, though of course it may have its elements of exaggeration, absurdity, or downright ridiculousness, is not a game for the dishonest. The playwright can lie his fool head off, but the play has to ring true. Even if you’re writing about a liar and the heartache he causes.
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Creating a Washington-based drama about private lives undone by public declarations, juxtaposing the doublespeak of the nation’s capital with that of a married couple who can no longer communicate honestly, is an intriguing if somewhat obvious idea. But in Supple in Combat, receiving its world premiere at Steppenwolf under the direction of Max Mayer, Alexandra Gersten-Vassilaros undermines this worthy conceit by employing a sitcom shorthand with TV rhythms, specious revelations, and hokey plot elements. In fact Gersten’s play isn’t much more credible than the deceitful communication between husbands and wives that she satirizes. Though the exploits of Bill and Hillary, Gary and Donna, or Oliver and Fawn might make for engrossing drama, those of straitlaced CIA man Bill (a typically crusty John Mahoney) and his well-educated but neurotic, crumbling wife Teresa (a noble and sympathetic Martha Lavey) do not. Like Bill’s tepid explanations for sanctioning murder and other heinous crimes, Gersten’s characters and plot devices are rarely plausible.
Teresa’s sudden acquisition of wisdom is only one of many simplistic sitcom twists that weaken Gersten’s play. The plot springs along from incident to incident and mood to mood, racking up implausibilities and zinging one-liners as it goes. A scene in which Teresa tells the news of her split with Bill to her alcoholic mom (a heartbreaking turn by Linda Stephens) is effective enough, driving home Gersten’s theme of people’s inability to communicate with each other, but it seems out of place and unnecessary, covering little new ground. Worse is Bill’s decision to employ Tony, a bumbling, money-hungry boor who makes the Watergate plumbers look like cat burglars (though Ron Dean’s performance is wickedly vulgar). Bill employing Tony to sneak into the house and retrieve his secret notebook makes about as much sense as Teresa’s decision to get Tony out of the house by seducing him.
