'Silverhill' at InterAct: A utopia beset by lust and conflict
Trouble in paradise. When was there not? It's the oldest story we know. Silverhill is the name of Thomas Gibbons' fine new play at InterAct Theatre Company and it's also the name of a 19th-century utopian religious community, based on the Oneida community in upstate New York. The very word utopia means "no place" - but that doesn't seem to stop anybody from hoping this time will be different.
Trouble in paradise. When was there not? It's the oldest story we know.
Silverhill is the name of Thomas Gibbons' fine new play at InterAct Theatre Company and it's also the name of a 19th-century utopian religious community, based on the Oneida community in upstate New York. The very word utopia means "no place" - but that doesn't seem to stop anybody from hoping this time will be different.
Begin with the set (designed by Nick Embree): a huge metal gate, the name emblazoned across it. The question is, does the gate lock the world out or the community in?
The pleasures of a good historical drama are many: the fascinations of the past (clothes, language), compounded by our initial sense of cynical, contemporary superiority (what simple folk they are). This is quickly overtaken by our realization that their problems are our problems, and their solutions shed light on ours, since Gibbons gives each point of view an impassioned monologue.
Add to this several love stories, a lot of lust, and the issue of private property in a sheltered world where all things - food, land, clothes, husbands, wives - are communally shared.
The Silverhill community practices free love, which, unsurprisingly, turns out to mean the old guy, Alden (Christopher Coucill), gets the beautiful girl, Tirzah (Jessica DalCanton), and ignores his middle-aged wife (Nancy Boykin). This is complicated by the fact that the randy old guy is the charismatic founder of the community, deeply respected and trusted.
Further complication, human nature being what it is: Tirzah falls in love with young Frank (Dan Hodge), who does the business of the community out in the world, selling its apples and woven cloth. Further complication: Tirzah's father (Tim Moyer) is torn between his love for his daughter and his loyalty to the community.
Strife, both economic and sexual, ensues, raising questions about human nature: Is love always possessive? Is male competition always sexual? Is innocence good or foolish? Is capitalism inevitably soul-destroying? Is private ownership a function of individuality? Does leadership always become tyranny? Do the young always rebel against the rules of their society? Good stuff to think about.
Seth Rozin directs the strong cast.
Silverhill
Through Nov. 14 at InterAct Theatre at the Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St. Tickets $27-$32. Information: 215-568-8079 or www.interacttheatre.org.
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