The True
theRep, Albany, New York
Written by Sharr White, directed by Maggie Mancinelli-Cahill
“Polly, you’re a f- – – ing landmine!”
“Polly” is Dorothea Noonan, a political force in 1977’s Albany, New York. She knows everyone, and has no reservations about addressing the political bigwigs in their own salty language. She understands the men she bosses around, calls out and calls down as needed. Her husband, Peter, tolerates her, loves her, and understands her, even when she might not herself.
She is part of the “machine” she denies exists. When the mayor of the city, Erastus Corning II, is looking at his 12th term in office, he is compelled by his compatriots, his mentor and his wife to get rid of Polly. He makes the attempt, but finds out how difficult it can be to make such a change in the dangerous political climate in which he exists.
This is drama, real life-drama. Sharr White has based his play on real people and real incidents, but this isn’t simply life played on a stage; no, this is theater of the ridiculous made genuine and realistic. This is terrific entertainment, and even with language that could offend David Mamet, this play is a standout for director Maggie Mancinelli-Cahill, who has shepherded a fine cast of players through a regional minefield of melodrama.
The playwright has chosen to expose unlikeable people to the scrutiny of the masses. It is rather unlikely that anyone in this play will conjure sympathy. Bill, a young man convinced to hold office (well played by Jack Mastrianni), is lost when Polly uncovers his true self. She dismembers him with her wrath when he tells her his motives for taking on a small, low-level political appointment. We may dislike the way she treats him, but we cannot avoid taking Polly’s side in this case, as the example here is justified through misplaced loyalty on her part. She exudes venom, and she has a right to do so, though her anger is misdirected and might destroy something that hasn’t yet been built.
Kevin McGuire plays the political machine’s principal driver, Charlie Ryan, in his underwear, with swagger and verve. One of the most unlikeable characters in the play, McGuire manages to make Ryan sympathetic near the end of his time with Polly. The hot discussions of the political futures of several key figures during a hot, airless summer night in Albany is all too real on the Rep’s new stage. Ryan’s anger at being confronted in his home is as heated as the talk he has with Polly, one which sets up the play’s final confrontations and her outrageous verbal displays.
Every man in this play has to deal with Polly, and every man has to fall back on every other man for self-preservation. They may be good friends, rivals or merely passing acquaintances, but Polly’s influence touches them all equally. Her political idol, Mayor Corning, loves Polly’s husband Peter, although their friendship is based on mutual adverse relationships with her. Neither man can live without her and neither can easily live with her. Their very male existences are tied to her equally masculine energy. They live no-win victories over one another while trying to avoid her wrath and indignation.
Peter Noonan, her husband, is sweetly and honestly played by Wynn Harmon. This is an actor who can make bitter tea taste like a strawberry milkshake. He makes love under pressure and takes care of the torturer’s ego when it’s damaged. He understands the elements that surround him, and suffers in unreasonable silence when he must in order to stay close to the woman he loves. Harmon is amazing to watch as he pours another drink or massages weary shoulders, as his character endeavors to stay above the fray.
He displays qualities that the young politician played by David Kenner will never be able to replicate as his ego grows exponentially into inevitable oblivion. He’ll never be able to control the scene the way the mayor’s wife Betty Corning does, as played by the brilliant Yvonne Perry.
Director Mancinelli-Cahill has created a monster with actress Antoinette LaVecchia’s outrageous Polly Noonan. Together, these women have forged a woman of steel with a heart of gold, tarnished but brilliant. LaVecchia rips into the role, while ripping out the guts of men who should be able to take her on, roping them into her corral like a rodeo star. Self-protective and self-righteous, Polly is like a Citizen Kane in strength and purpose, heart on sleeve, with an intensity masked by a sense of humor that wounds others. She is a truly extraordinary actress.
Roman Tatarowicz’s set is fluid and Howard Tsvi Kaplan’s costumes are up-country tacky, while Devorah Kengmana’s lighting is emotionally right. The Rep has a hit on its hands, a well-deserved one that exposes the world machinations of a political center in what is really a small city and not a world at all. Or is it? Look around at our world today and say otherwise.
“The True” plays on the mainstage of Capital Repertory Theatre, 251 North Pearl St. in Albany, through April 24. For information and tickets, click here or call the box office at 518-445-7469.
