by Kirby Lindsay, posted 22 March 2013
On March 28th, West Of Lenin (WofL,) located in West Fremont, will host a month long run (through April 21st,) of the play ‘Master Harold …And The Boys’ by Athol Fugard and directed by Gregory prize winner M. Burke Walker. Produced by WofL Founder A.J. Epstein, this production of a classic theatrical work, marks several milestones, for the theater and for Fremont.
A Dream To Collaborate
A well-known drama, set in 1950s South Africa, comes from an established, well-respected playwright. “One of the best dramas the 20th century offered,” Epstein declared it. WofL has a good reputation for hosting quality work, most are small plays by emerging playwrights, and/or produced by humble theater companies. With ‘Master Harold…’, “he’s now doing something more people have heard of,” acknowledged Walker.
“We had been throwing show ideas at each other for about 10 years,” Epstein explained. The men met through their work in theater, and had sought a project to collaborate on – when they had the money, and/or the space. “Once I became convinced this was going to be a going concern,” Epstein recalled about his opening the theater at 203 N 36th St, “I asked him, ‘What do you want to do?’”
Epstein recalled ‘Master Harold…’ being under early consideration, but the director recalled it being one of many ideas – but ‘Master Harold…’ kept returning to the top of the wish list. Finally, “we decided we had to do it,” Walker explained, “if we could cast it.”
Luck With The Cast
Although it requires only three actors, casting for this play is extremely tricky. According to Walker, the main roles of ‘Sam’ can usually be filled. “It’s on a lot of actor’s bucket lists,” he explained, “because it is so meaningful. For a black actor, it’s an iconic role.” What surprised him was that his first choice for the role not only said yes, but that he reached him on his way back to Seattle.
Walker knew G. Valmont Thomas from his mis-spent youth, at an Empty Space Theatre workshop for high school students. Walker served as founding Artistic Director for the Theatre – before it moved to Fremont – and Thomas went on to perform in Empty Space shows including ‘Drinking In America’ and ‘The Rocky Horror Show’.
“I’m very happy to work with him again,” Walker said of Thomas, who agreed immediately to Walker’s request that he play ‘Sam.’ Walker then lucked into Kevin Warren, through auditions, for the role of ‘Willie.’
“The missing key was Master Harold,” Walker explained. The actor must be young, yet, “he has to have great intellectual capacity and great emotional range,” Walker insisted. The play is semi-autobiographical (the playwright’s full name is Harold Athol Lanigan Fugard,) and captures a pivotal moment in his life. As Walker synopsized, the play shows, “the challenges that life presents us are not always the ones for which life has prepared us.”
And a third time, Walker got lucky. He insisted on casting an actor able to deliver long speeches in an authentic sounding South African dialect. Through his extensive contacts, he heard of James Lindsay, a recent graduate from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, a transplant from South Africa, and willing to take the role.
Being In The Same Room
“I love working in an intimate space,” Walker said, “where audiences can see the whites of the actor’s eyes.” A serious drama, ‘Master Harold…’ can also be fun, Walker observed, and can best be experienced in an intimate setting, Epstein acknowledged, “and West of Lenin is intimate.”
Walker recalled the best of the early days at Empty Space, when, “the audience was in the same room with the actors.” WofL, a black box space, allowed set designer Catherine Cornell to be creative without constraint, and the configuration of the stage is, for this show, in the round. “There isn’t a single [audience] seat that isn’t 12 – 15 feet from the stage,” Walker acknowledged.
“It’s easier to do a big, realistic set,” Walker said of the large-scale performances in large-scale theaters, “and play around in it.” Yet, Walker welcomes the chance to return to his roots. “Empty Space started as a 60 seat theater, remade for every show,” he recalled. “This is really nifty,” he said, “to take one of these hugely important plays, and do it in the kind of detail it deserves.”
Opportunity Of A Blank Canvas
Epstein encourages comparisons of WofL to the much-loved, and much-missed, Empty Space. Walker recalled a review of Empty Space from its early days: “They have the skills of professionals,” he paraphrased, “and the hearts of amateurs.” In many ways, this also describes WofL. “A mentor once taught me how to be silly, and a smart ass,” Epstein explained, “but also how to turn it off. That’s what I’m trying to do.”
“The vision is great and interesting work,” Epstein explained about WofL, with a personal take – “everything that I program,” he went on, “I ask, ‘Does A.J. want to sit through it? Is it something I can bring my parents to? A date?’”
He wants WofL to be, “open to being radically different,” with works that challenge the audience, and the conventions about what ‘theatre’ must be. “I’m hoping to add to the conversation,” Epstein said, “as to what is possible.” He wants to offer a smaller-scale, alternative space, well-maintained, and very functional. As he said, “I’m about giving artists a blank canvas.”
Come see what Walker, Epstein, Thomas, Lindsay, and the crew, create on that canvas. Tickets for ‘Master Harold …And The Boys’ can be purchased through Brown Paper Tickets, for performances Thursdays – Sundays, for $18 (advance) or $20 (at the door – if seats remain available.) Or, enjoy two pay-what-you-can performances – on Wednesday, March 27th and a special Industry Night on Monday, April 8th – to see what these skilled artists can do with a blank canvas.
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©2013 Kirby Lindsay. This column is protected by intellectual property laws, including U.S. copyright laws. Reproduction, adaptation or distribution without permission is prohibited.