Stage Review - The Skin of Our Teeth (Seattle Rep)

Stage Review - The Skin of Our Teeth
Presented By: Seattle Rep - Seattle, WA
Show Run: September 26 - October 20, 2024
Date Reviewed: Wednesday, October 02, 2024 (Opening Night)
Reviewed By: Greg Heilman

Artistic Directors, more specifically theatrical ones, and even more specifically the good ones, like to impress upon the public what is important to them when building a season. They also leave a lasting fingerprint on everything they do, their own themes weaving their way in and out of their programming. This is even more true when an Artistic Director is programming his or her first season at a new theatre, as Dámaso Rodríguez is at Seattle Rep. Coming into the organization last year, the 2024-25 season is his first complete season as Artistic Director, and the first he’s programmed himself. What he’s done to start and leave his own fingerprints on the Rep is something risky. He’s chosen his first show to be something impactful to him on a personal level, and also something that’s somewhat challenging, in more ways than one. Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth is not the easiest show to sell, nor is it the easiest to design and produce, but Dámaso has taken both of those challenges personally, not just kicking off his first full season in charge at The Rep with it, but also taking the show’s directorial reins. The Skin of Our Teeth, running on stage at the Rep’s Bagley Wright Theatre through October 20, brings together three distinct stories (the show runs about 2 1/2 hours, including 2 15-minute intermissions) that invoke conversations about humanity, its place and impact in global history, and our legacy as a species. It’s a layered piece that follows one family, Mr. and Mrs. Antrobus and their children, through stories that find them faced with an impending ice age, a deadly hurricane, and the aftermath of a war which has torn apart their family, barely escaping all by, um, the skin of their teeth, and with the help of love, books, and a little luck.

Structurally, I’m willing to wager that you’ve never seen a play quite like this one before. It seems to break every rule of theatre out there, from the constant breaking of the fourth wall, to actors stepping out of character either to refuse a scene, or ask for a change. There’s plenty of back and forth between the sound booth and the stage, backstage is shown, and the stage manager becomes an important part of the action. All of that is by design, though, The Skin of Our Teeth is quick to tell everyone that what they’re watching is a play, and that if you’re going to watch it, you’re going to see everything. And in seeing everything, the result is something that feels like Thornton Wilder had that rare gift of recollecting a dream, then taking his dream and adapting that into the script for The Skin of Our Teeth. That is to say that in the telling of it, I’d be lying if I didn’t say it was a bit weird. But this isn’t the kind of play that you look at every line of dialogue to take something substantive from, moreover it’s the kind that you need to let wash over you, and at the end you realize that you’ve seen something uniquely, but very well, written, as well as something that should lead to the betterment of humanity through conversation and introspection. Case in point, Act 1. In this first stanza, the audience learns that Mr. Antrobus, the inventor of the wheel and lever, is working on inventing not just the alphabet, but multiplication tables to boot. Visually, the scene appears to take place in the 1960s, Stephanie Kerley Schwartz’s set is beautiful, a home dressed in that mid-century style, but when the family takes in a whooly mammoth and a dinosaur, and begins to talk about the large chunks of ice that are heading south to their New Jersey home, and quickly, it’s apparent that everything is topsy turvy in Wilder’s world. The idea of chronology as we know it is turned on its head, and the characterizations make even less sense. The parents are manic, on one hand hoping to stave off their doom, but then when something trivial happens to upset them, they immediately talk about wanting to kill themselves, or turn to frantically slapping each other. It’s as if these humans on stage are still cavemen in some regards, but with more modern sensibilities. Act 2 depicts the same family, but at a convention of The Order of Mammals, of which Antrobus has just been named president, while Act 3 brings the group to the aftermath of a lengthy war that has divided the family. There are references to the family being thousands of years old, and it soon becomes clear that this group represents a lot more than just a collection of people acting out a story. There’s also the biblical undertones, of which there are plenty in The Skin of Our Teeth. The fact is that if you take a micro look at this play, rather than a macro, you’re going to come away from each act asking yourself what you’ve just seen, and you may even think about getting up and walking out, but I beg you, don’t. Once you see this play through to its end, something that does a nice job tying all of this together, you’ll be glad that you invested the time.

The creativity of the design of this piece is apparent from the beginning. Rather than just open the play in its 1960s setting, the Rep inventively ties the evolution, or in this case the devolution of its logo, reversing time chronologically until the audience is set in the right place in time. Following an imaginative projected broadcast of The News of the World, in which some initial context is given to the audience, the curtain raises to reveal the aforementioned Antrobus house, well appointed and spotless, likely because of the diligence of the family’s maid Sabina, who is also the first person on stage and also the one who introduces how….unique this play is going to be. Since The Skin of Our Teeth is ultimately the telling of three distinct stories, this strange family the only constant, each member of the creative team was required to design and build for three separate shows. Take Stephanie Kerley Schwartz’s sets. From the Antrobus house in Act 1, to the convention floor and subsequent beach/boardwalk setting in Act 2, and the Act 3 set, which is mostly a deconstructed, or war damaged, version of the house from Act 1, her work here shows how versatile Stephanie is in her ability. The sets tie into the emotions of each act as well, ranging from exacting to festive to downright sad. Dámaso’s overall vision for this piece, which is tied together with Stephanie’s scenic design, Robert J. Aguilar’s standard brilliant work in lighting, and M.L. Dogg’s sound design, not to mention Megan Wilkerson’s work with projections, reaches into the heart of Wilder’s story, from its prehistoric and biblical ties, to its studies of the best and worst of humanity as personified by this strange family. And as the story goes, so does Angela Balogh’s costumes, from the prim and proper of Act 1, to the more leisurely look of Act 2, through the dystopian feel of Act 3, again this is versatility in design at its best. All and all, this is a well done piece of art and a fantastic look into the future of this new artistic director’s vision for the future of Seattle Rep.

Not only does it take a special group to bring a story this complex and avant garde to the stage, it takes a cast that is talented enough to dive into these characters and present them in a way that gets to the heart of its humanity. It’s a play that in some ways doesn’t take itself too seriously, while at the same time telling a story that is extremely serious. The Antrobus family, father George, mother Maggie, son Henry, and daughter Gladys are played by Carlos Lacámara, Emily Kuroda, Chip Sherman, and Rachel Guyer-Mafone, respectively. The family name comes from the greek word, meaning “human”, but that’s not required knowledge to understand that this family is a representation of all humanity and that the play is an allegory about the life of mankind through the ages. And father George, inventor of all of those important things is played by Carlos so well in a role that requires him to be stern, yet lenient, manic yet controlled, joyful yet vindictive. All of those things are built into this character, and Emily’s Maggie isn’t much different. Of course, these are all things that we, as humans, can muster at any time, even at the same time. As a woman, it’s clear that Maggie’s importance is at least equal to that of her husband, but she only gets credit for her “contributions”. Both Carlos and Emily navigate their characters through these extinction level disasters and bring their family out on the other side, proving that whether or not we, as humans, have caused these disasters, it’s only through our humanity and its creations, both in science and art, that we can make it through. These are wonderful pieces of acting, especially considering the not-so-normal dialogue, settings, and situations that their characters engage in. Meanwhile, Chip’s Henry and Rachel’s Gladys as the children of these parents can’t help but be troubled, though as Gladys is clearly the parents’ favorite, Henry is often overlooked, causing his resentment to grow as the play progresses. There’s another layer here as well, and that’s around the secret that the family is clearly hiding, a secret with biblical undertones related to Henry’s past. I’d be remiss, though, if I didn’t mention the other member of the family adjacent, maid Sabina. There are also biblical connotations in her name as well, and especially in her alter ego Lilly that the character represents in Act 2. Sara Hennessy plays Sabina in this production of The Skin of Our Teeth and is just wonderful, her command of the story and what Wilder is doing with it, its nonsensical nature, and its manner of dialogue on point. I especially like her delivery, and how it changes from Act 1 to Act 2 as her persona changes. Sara is the connective tissue in The Skin of Our Teeth and she is a master at managing this family and this play.

The talent doesn’t end with the lead roles, though, there is plenty to be found in the supporting cast. Ally Poole as the Muse is a delight, and boy can she sing, her soulful voice coming in handy in Act 2 as she leads the group in singing the new message for the Ancient and Honorable Order of Mammals, “Enjoy Yourself”, all while she, her fellow muses (Sunam Ellis, Viviana Garza, and Laura Crotte), and the rest of the group face the threat of an impending hurricane, which comes with its own Noah-esque moment in the story. Sunam isn’t just a muse, though, she is also the show within a show’s stage manager, who is responsible for holding it all together against all odds. Sunam is great at depicting the chaos around which a stage manager must express control, and not only that, she’s funny, too. Other highlights in the supporting group include Bradley Goodwill’s Moses in Act 1 along with Tim Gouran’s Homer and Arlando Smith’s Doctor, all taking up residence with the Antrobus family while they all face down a giant iceberg coming for their home. Theodore Detrano is a very good telegraph boy, but my favorite out of the entire supporting cast has to be Laura Crotte as the fortune teller in Act 2. Laura is responsible, through this character, for much of the heavier and thought provoking lines of the show, and her portrayal of this gypsy-like persona is strong, confident, and consistent, and her accent is so good. It’s in her scenes where some of Robert J. Aguilar’s lighting expertise comes to call as well, accentuating the mystery and emotion in Laura’s delivery. And while Laura delivers many of the lessons in Act 2, perhaps the best line of the show, and one that helps sum up much of the play, is delivered by Carlos’ George when, in Act 3, he says “When you’re at war, you think of a better world. When you’re at peace, you think of a more comfortable one”. And that’s part of what this unique play imparts on its audience. But it’s not just that one line that represents the play, it’s all of them taken as a whole, and though the play seems strange at times, isn’t that humanity? Best not to judge us on individual actions, but wait for the it all to unfold to understand our true legacy, good or bad,

The Skin of Our Teeth is Thornton Wilder’s take on humanity, its past, present, and future. And much like our species, it isn’t our individuality that should be judged, but rather the whole of us and how we act as a society. In the same way, The Skin of Our Teeth may seem difficult to digest, or understand, at times, but it’s the kind of art that is best enjoyed by letting it wash over you. Doing that, and by appreciating how good the cast and creative team have done at Seattle Rep to produce a very good version of a challenging piece, you’ll come away appreciating both the messaging and the production value of this this Pulitzer Prize winning play.

The Skin of Our Teeth runs on stage, at Seattle Rep’s Bagley Wright Theatre through October 20. For more information, including tickets, visit https://www.seattlerep.org/. And for more information on the show’s opportunity for walk-up roles for each performance, head to the Rep’s webpage or reach out via email to education@seattlerep.org.

Photo credit: Bronwen Houck