Athol Fugard teaches ”A Lesson from Aloes” slowly, and, at first, a little mechanically.
In the brown front yard and the drab cutaway interior of the home that designer Kevin Rigdon has placed on the stage of Steppenwolf Theatre, the talk between Piet and Gladys, the husband and wife who dwell there, is initially desultory, though it becomes clear after a while that something is terribly wrong in their lives.
It is 1963 in South Africa, and Fugard, the obsessed chronicler of his homeland`s tortured racial relations, takes his time in setting up the political history and individual tragedies he will reveal. The play`s central symbol of the aloes, prickly plants that survive even in drought, clanks heavily into place in Piet`s bluff conversation about the place of species in the world of nature. And a few crucial facts about the couple`s miserable situation gradually emerge: Piet, once an active man of politics, has been ostracized by friends who believe he has informed on their cause, and Gladys, distraught when the police invaded her home and violated her privacy, has been back a few months after a long period away in a hospital. Together, they are preparing supper in honor of a rare visit from a black friend, a fellow activist recently released from prison but now forced to leave the country with his family.
This meticulous laying of the groundwork is expertly modulated in all its telling domestic details by director Suzanne Shepherd, and, thanks to well-crafted portrayals by Francis Guinan and Joan Allen, these preliminary skirmishes hold attention. Guinan, in one of his best Steppenwolf roles, carries across the brave expansiveness of this man of good will, with the aid of an expertly rounded Afrikaans accent; and Allen, as the well-bred, high-strung Gladys, keeps herself in a kind of distracted, mesmerized state, until a jolt of memory electrifies her whole being in an awful spasm of terror.
It is not until the second act, however, and the arrival of their friend Steve, that the full rage, sorrow and pity of Fugard`s drama is unleashed.
Partly this is because of the direct, elemental force that Danny Glover brings to the role. From the moment he walks through the front gate, in ill-fitting suit and a little drunk, his big, simple, kindly Steve is the quintessentially decent everyman, ground down by the hate and brutality forced on him, his family and his race.
But most of all the play comes to brilliant life because of Fugard`s own passion and eloquence. Having paved the way at length, he at last smashes through to show the full extent of the tragic waste of human life in each of his three characters. In one burning speech after another, he gives vent to their separate frustration, humiliation and defeat under a system that has driven good men to madness, despair and alienation.
It`s a powerful, moving climax, and Guinan, Allen and Glover rise stunningly to the occasion, both in the big scenes of all-out emotion and in the small moments of slumped shoulders, a slight shuffle of the feet or a resigned bow of the head.
Their tragedy is our common tragedy, Fugard cries out, and with actors such as these to embody that message, the impact of his words is devastating. NOTE: The 19th and latest member of the Steppenwolf ensemble is actor-director-writer Frank Galati, who this season staged the company`s hit production of ”You Can`t Take It With You.” Galati, who believes in keeping busy, also teaches at Northwestern University and is the assistant artistic director-designate of Goodman Theatre.
”A LESSON FROM ALOES”
A play by Athol Fugard, directed by Suzanne Shepherd, with scenery and lighting by Kevin Rigdon and costumes by Nan Cibula. Opened Feb. 2 at Steppenwolf Theatre, 2851 N. Halsted St., and plays at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 6 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday; and 3 and (starting Feb. 16) 7 p.m. Sunday, through March 16. Length of performance, 2:30. Tickets are $13 to $18.50, with discounts available for students, senior citizens and groups. Phone 472-4141. ——THE CAST
Piet Bezuidenhout……….Francis Guinan,
Gladys Bezuidenhout……..Joan Allen,
Steve Daniels…………..Danny Glover.
