Stage Review - Men On Boats (inD Theatre)

Stage Review - Men On Boats
Presented By: inD Theatre - Bainbridge Island, WA
Show Run: October 11 - October 27, 2024
Date Reviewed: Friday, October 11, 2024 (Opening Night)
Reviewed By: Greg Heilman

One of the things I enjoy most about new shows, or more specifically shows that are “new to me”, is that they give me a reason to dig into the history of a play or the biography of a playwright. The fact that I get to learn something about a writer or a show also means that I appreciate when theaters or companies are more risky in their programming, as that means more often than not that there’s something new to educate myself about. And so it is with inD Theatre. This is a group that prides itself in selecting shows that drive social change, and doing so in way that minimizes design while focusing on the actor, or as they say the “bridge between the script and the audience”. Their latest show, Jaclyn Backhaus’ Men On Boats, is the perfect example of a show that fits right into inD’s mission. The play, which runs on stage at Rolling Bay Hall on Bainbridge Island through October 27, tells the story of John Wesley Powell’s first government sanctioned expedition to the western United States with a crew of ten split over four boats, each named by Powell and his crew, the Emma Dean (named for Powell’s wife), the Kitty Clyde’s Sister (named for an old Civil War song “Minnie Clyde, Kitty Clyde’s Sister”), the No-Name (creative in its lack of creativity), and the Maid of the Canyon (named by men who had clearly been away from home for some time). Men On Boats is based in large part on the extensive journal that Powell kept of the journey, in which he chronicled people he and his crew met, and places that they saw or stopped at. It was a perilous journey, one that found them tackling rapids, plunging over waterfalls, and spending many a mile on land portaging their boats. It was hard on the boats and the crew, physically and mentally. Backhaus’ story depicts all of these trials, how the individual attitudes of the crew combined to form a collective personality at times, and serious dissension at others. But, you’re probably reading this thinking “how does a play about a bunch of men on an expedition in 1869 drive social change?”. Well, that’s where the playwright’s vision for how this story should be presented comes in.

Jaclyn Backhaus’ work is categorized by her “(examination of) the intersection of underhistoricized people and known historical timelines”. In other words, she takes historical events, in which white men were the subjects predominantly, and retells them with actors who are anything but. In the script for Men On Boats, Backhaus notes for casting that “The characters in Men On Boats were historically cisgender white males. The cast should be made up entirely of people who are not.” The intention is to cast the show with actors who are “female-identifying, trans-identifying, genderfluid, and/or non gender-conforming”. There are a few other notes, but that’s about the extent of what director Talena Laine had to work with when designing this production. It’s not a lot, and for a first time director, as Talena is here, it’s the furthest from a paint by number that you can get. The result is Men On Boats, a show which has neither men nor boats on stage. And that’s a good thing. People ask me all the time what I look for in a director when reviewing shows, and if I’m being honest, it’s exactly what Talena has done here. Being forced to determine the best way to present this show when given little to no direction, Talena has delivered a masterpiece. I’ll talk about the amazing group of actors she has assembled below, but it’s her design aesthetic that is the most fascinating part of this show. Ladders. Yes, ladders. Upon entering Rolling Bay Hall, that’s what the audience sees both on stage and on the its backdrop. The set, designed by Erik Furuheim from Talena’s vision, also provides continuity between itself and the scaffolding on which the stage lights are positioned. The static ladders are one thing, but when the actors pick them up, the audience forgets that they are ladders and sees them as the boats that they are used for throughout the show. Using the ladders as boats is one thing, but the movement of the actors with these “boats” is quite another. As they navigate the falls and rapids, Talena’s movement is so good, the suspense when the crew descends both is palpable. And the imaginative design doesn’t end there. Talena is also responsible for sound, and her percussive accompaniment during tricky navigations adds so much to the suspense that the actors help to build, and through the complementary relationship between it and Eli Backer’s lighting, Talena has created a world where the underwater is discernible from above and where calm is fully distinguishable from the height of controlled panic. I can’t say enough about how wonderful and imaginatively creative this piece of art is. If I had the equivalent of a Paul Hollywood handshake, I’d surely use it here.

The design, of course, is only one part of why Men On Boats is so special. The cast that Talena has assembled is simply wonderful. The expedition starts with four boats, John Wesley Powell (Reese Sigman), William Dunn (Chelsea Sheppard), and John Colton Sumner (Sarah Rodler) on the Emma Dean, Old Shady, Powell’s older brother (Meagan Kirby) and Bradley (Helene Minassian) on the Kitty Clyde’s Sister, O.G. Howland (Ronan Pirkle) and his brother Seneca (Fiona Palazzi) along with Brit Frank Goodman (Colleen Gillon) on the No-Name, and finally Hall (Tessa “Cricket” James) and the group’s cook Hawkins (Izzy Laws) on the Maid of the Canyon, the self-professed “party boat”. Each of the actors brings their own unique style to these roles, and each seems perfectly cast. Most importantly, at least in my opinion, once these actors begin, the fact that none of them are the cisgendered males that they are portraying on stage is completely irrelevant for the storytelling. Well, perhaps that’s not giving them enough credit. There’s a sensibility that this cast brings to these characters, a perspective of portraying a male from a mostly outside point of view that is like looking in a mirror and seeing masculinity through a new lens. Ensemble-wise, these actors work so well together, something that’s a requirement for a show that depicts situations in which teamwork and cooperation is the key to success. Their movement and dialogue all feel natural, from the perspectives of both diction and pace. And speaking of pace, this is a show that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats and never slogs. It’s all so well done, especially from a first time director.

The cast is led by Reese Sigman’s portrayal of Powell. It should be said that it’s refreshing to see a limb different actor play a limb different character, the one-armed John Wesley Powell. Of course this fact doesn’t define Reese’s performance. What defines it is his command of the stage and his crew. Reese’s Powell is exuberant, that is until their first incident, after which his demeanor changes and he becomes more serious, defiant, and a bit defensive. There are a number of times in which Powell must challenge his crew, or must respond to a challenge from his crew, and in each case Reese’s performance matches perfectly the emotion of the scene. Sharing the boat with Powell is Dunn and Sumner, with Chelsey Sheppard’s Dunn being the one who challenges Powell the most and Sumner, played by Sarah Rodler, a former soldier and loyal to Powell. On the Kitty Clyde’s Sister are Meagan Kirby’s Old Shady and Helene Minassian’s Bradley. Meagan Kirby’s performance here is one of my favorites, along with Fiona Palazzi’s Seneca Howland. Meagan’s Old Shady is for the most part quiet and withdrawn, but eventually comes out of his shell when he’s called upon to defend his little brother. It’s clear from Meagan’s performance that there’s a pain somewhere below the surface, each of these former Civil War soldiers carrying their own baggage that informs their personalities. Meagan is also well skilled in pulling off some shanties that are used to close some of the scenes in Men On Boats. They’re haunting and beautifully sung. Meanwhile, Fiona’s performance as Seneca is all about the delivery, and it’s as deadpan as deadpan can get. Fiona is uniquely skilled at presenting something tragic in a way that is downright funny. Izzy Laws’ Hawkins is another humorous performance, as the cook for the crew, as is Colleen Gillon’s Frank Goodman, and while there are plenty of chaotic and suspenseful moments in this play, there’s a decent amount of humor, especially during the scenes when the crew is off the boats, which are also when most of character exposition happens.

There’s a lot to think about with Men On Boats, and Powell’s quote upon “discovering” landmarks, “Nature’s already named the lands, and here we are naming them after ourselves”, is just one piece of it. The play requires some introspection, not just about our humanity, but also about our place in a world that is previously inhabited and what our responsibilities in that world are. It’s also about coming to grips with our limitations and being able to manage ourselves within those constraints. And the show has an epilogue to beat the band, one that makes the purpose of all that has come before come under examination.

Men On Boats is a gender bending retelling of one of the adventures of explorer John Wesley Powell. It’s a solid story that itself explores the humanity of our extension into the western United States. The inD Theatre production is led by an extremely talented cast, but what sets this production apart is the imaginative and creative design that director Talena Laine has put together. It’s an engaging piece of theatre that is perhaps the most distinctive show currently on stage in the region.

Men On Boats, from inD Theatre, runs on stage at Rolling Bay Hall on Bainbridge Island through October 27. For more information, including ticket availability and sales, visit https://www.indtheatre.org/.

Photo credit: Colin Madison Photography