Review: Mother Bear (Mortar Theatre)

Mother Bear roars with danger

Reviewed by Barry Eitel

As a normal, sedan-wielding citizen, the life of a trucker has a white trash mystique for me. Rest stop showers. Knowledge of every 24-hour diner in the country. A glove compartment bulging with methamphetamines for those all-night long hauls. Yes, much of this is a big rig fantasy. But it’s a whimsy Mortar Theatre’s Mother Bear indulges in heavily. While the tone is unstable and the story questionable, Jayme McGhan’s play is a white-knuckle ride, full of scumbags. I’ve reviewed most of Mortar’s production history and Mother Bear is the most entertaining piece I’ve seen.

The world-premiere tale isn’t set on the open road, but in a tiny trucker diner in the middle of nowhere, Utah. The pancake house, run by the pictured-sweatshirt-wearing Vera (J. Kingsford Goode) is a front operation for the Disciples, a quasi-Christian mob of truckers who earn higher wages because a Disciples’ trident stamp is on their rig. They also nab a few bucks from hijacking trucks transporting drugs and arms fresh from Mexico. They are led by Mother (Jim Farrell), an unapproachable God-like figure who on some days seems like a reasonable dude, but, on others, won’t hesitate to smash a disrespectful fellow’s head into a table. A young outsider, Freely (Brian Plocharczyk), wants Mother to sign the Disciples to his new truckers’ union. Mother is plenty content with his semi-legal operation. Mother’s days are numbered, though. Spunky female trucker Delia (Maria Enriquez) looks to take down the Disciples from the inside. And Bones (Dustin Whitehead, in the most delicious performance in the piece), Mother’s amoral bodyguard, has his own loyalty issues.

McGhan can’t keep the mood of the piece stable. The first act, though there are plenty of head injuries, knives, and guns, emits a charming warmth and mostly likable, albeit rough around the edges, crew of lowlifes. This feeling flees from the second act, which takes a dark, undeserved turn. The final few scenes have more immediacy, but it comes out of nowhere. The characters unravel, all of them revealing that they are much different than what we first thought.

This makes for an interesting study of appearances vs. reality, but I don’t think that’s McGhan’s point. According to Mortar’s promotion (and their usual pick of work), Mother Bear is a social issues play which opines on the hotly-contested subject of unions. The series of twists undercut the message. I left the Athenaeum unsure of what I should be taking away. There’s no final thesis on labor relations—it’s a play about the nature of evil. This is fine, but McGhan could frame the theme better.

The performances fit right into the text. To be honest, I don’t think the world of truckers and the world of theatre intersect often, but Jason Boat’s cast is wholly authentic. Farrell’s Mother is a King Lear of the open road. There’s a welcoming twinkle in his eye, but also a repressed ferocity just waiting for the cage to be opened. Plocharczyk is a bit whiney, but it works for the oft-abused Freely. Goode’s deadpan portrayal of Vera is spot-on for a cynical diner owner/only waitress. Enriquez’s Delia is tough-as-nails and brashly sexual, except in her last scene where her bravery and dignity disappear—a disappointment. Whitehead rounds out the cast excellently. His Bones is straight out of that bar where your kind isn’t welcome.

Mother Bear pulls as much inspiration from the Bible as it does from America’s highways. It’s this oddly spiritual realm that McGhan seems to really want to explore. McGhan’s script requires re-evaluation and tightening. Boat and the cast invest so much of themselves in the world, though, McGhan’s true intent doesn’t seem so important.

Mortar Theatre’s Mother Bear continues through June 19th at the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Ave., with performances Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm, and Sundays at 3pm.  Tickets are $20 ($18 seniors, $15 students, $12 veterans), and can be purchased by phone (800-982-2787) or online here.

Artists

cast

Maria Enriquez (Delia), Jim Farrell (Mother), J. Kingsford Goode (Vera), Brian Plocharczyk (Freely), Dustin Whitehead (Bones)

behind the scenes

Jason Boat˚ (director); Thomas Campbell (stage manager); Derek Garza˚ (technical director); Scott Leigh Nielsen (sound design); Jeff Shields (props design); Stephanie Stroud˚ (asst. director, production manager); Elizabeth Styles (fight choreography); Catherine Tantillo (costume design); Fred Uebele+ (lighting design); Edward Matthew Walter (set design), Tom McGrath (photos).

˚denotes Mortar Theatre Company member.
+denotes Mortar Theatre Artistic Associate.

Tags: Athenaeum Theatre, Barry Eitel, Brian Plocharczyk, Catherine Tantillo, Derek Garza, Dustin Whitehead, Edward Matthew Walter, Elizabeth Styles, Fred Uebele, J. Kingsford Goode, Jason Boat, Jayme McGhan, Jeff Shields, Jim Farrell, Maria Enriquez, Mortar Theatre Company, Mother Bear, Scott Leigh Nielson, Stephanie Stroud, Thomas Campbell

Category: 2011 Reviews, Athenauem, Barry Eitel, Mortar Theatre Company, World Premier