Sunday afternoon found me on Governors Island for a site-specific production of The Plantation, an adaptation of Chekov’s The Cherry Orchard, set in Reconstruction 1870s Virginia. As a concept, it worked well. I’m somewhat chagrined to admit, though, that I have zero experience with Chekov—never read him and never seen a production of any of the plays. So when I say that as a concept, it worked, this is based on my after-the-fact reading about The Cherry Orchard.
Claire Beckman adapted and directed the production, which was a staged reading with scripts in hand. In this case, it was close to being fully staged. Many of the sixteen actors involved have appeared at Brave New World Rep, in Brooklyn, where Ms. Beckman was the producing artistic director for many years (she’s also a co-founder). In a sense this was a plus, as the company on Sunday seemed to have a good rapport.
The specific site for The Plantation was the Commanding Officers House in Nolan Park on the island. With its stately white columns, slightly cramped back yard, and many-roomed interior, parts of the site-specific concept worked better than others. After what threatened to be a washout, courtesy of a rather violent ten- to fifteen-minute thunderstorm, the play got under way just slightly behind schedule.
Those stately white columns and broad front porch were just about perfect for Act I, which also made use of the narrow space just down the few steps from the porch. The transition to Act II, at the rear of the house, was a little ungainly, perhaps because the performance was pretty well attended, meaning that a lot of people had to travel. These transitions (all three of them) slowed down the action a little too much for my taste. Act III took place inside the house, and this was the least effective in terms of blocking and spacing because there were very few ways to view all of the action. I was able to move around a couple of times to see better but most audience members didn’t have that option. Act IV was in the front yard again, and gave a nice feel of the play running full circle.
The acting, costumes, and direction all came off very well. The amplified sound (body microphones) did not fare quite as well. Part of that may have been due to the weather—moisture has a way of affecting electronics, and not in a good way. Another aspect that seemed like a good idea on paper but didn’t pan out too well was the use of Fisk Jubilee Singers to transition from act to act. Traveling the distances during the transitions caused the singing to be out of synch from time to time. It’s a good concept that needs better execution.
The company hopes to continue their Indiegogo campaign in order to raise funds for fully mounted performances in the same space next summer. If they’re successful in their fundraising, I hope to see the real deal then—and, of course, fill you all in. Once again, there’s a lot of stuff out there, and I plan on continuing to search for more.
ConcertMeister (or, PlayMeister)
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