WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21, 1999

'Two Planks' lacking in passion and wry humor

By John Putman

On-Line Forty-Niner

If one can somehow imagine a Moliere or Shakespeare play without the penetrating human insight, resonant language and wry humor, one can begin to understand how ineffectually Anthony Minghella's "Two Planks and a Passion," presented by California Repertory Theatre, depicts its themes.

Premiering in England in 1984 (under the direction of "Trainspotting's" Danny Boyle), it is difficult to comprehend what would possess Cal Rep - and guest director Brian Nelson - to resurrect this limp and passionless play.

It is similarly difficult to comprehend that this is the same Minghella who received an Academy Award nomination for his screen adaptation of "The English Patient." The dialogue in "Two Planks" is so flat, ponderous and uninspiring that it delivers with all the nuance and sophistication of a legal summons.

This is not to fault the Cal Rep actors, who deliver an adept presentation in the intimate confines of Edison Theatre in Long Beach, but, like sailors on a sinking medieval ship, though struggling vainly to prevent disaster, they must drown with their vessel.

Set in York, England, in the late 14th century, the play centers around the village's annual production of its popular biblical passion plays amidst a surprise visit by King Richard II (Baron Kelly), Queen Anne (Dawn Flood) and the Earl of Oxford (Patric Taylor) from London.

The sudden arrival of royalty sets off a crisis amidst the patrons of the play: skittish guild master Geoffrey LeKolve (Brian Kapell), his domineering wife Kathryn (Julie Dixon) and guild chaplain Henry Melton (Dan Forcey).

While LeKolve worries about the financial cost of such a production, the parson wants to transform the modest production into a spectacle - including a crucified Christ gilded with gold - in order to impress the royal entourage.

Concerned that this extravagance will destroy the play's humble message, the artisans presenting the play rebel and plan to stage their own humble production.

Meanwhile, the king, queen and earl amuse themselves by playfully tormenting the mayor (Ken Rugg) and mayoress (Katie Johnson) of York by subverting the couple's subservient status toward their rulers, although to what end is anybody's guess but Minghella's.

The plot establishes a ripe setting for the examination and satire of class differentiation, ruling class pomposity and indifference, religious hypocrisy and extravagance and marital bickering a la Moliere, but Minghella proves unfit for the task.

Short on profundity, however, a seemingly desperate Ming-hella litters his deflated dialogue with healthy dosages of insipid bodily humor. When laughs are finally evoked toward the end of the play by a flatulent King Herod and a woman spurting blood as she is viscously and repeatedly stabbed during the "Slaughter of the Innocents" play-within-the-play, it is obvious that a satire has wildly missed its mark.

The earnest cast, most effectively Kapell, Johnson and Pete Uribe as one of the rebellious artisans (the only character allowed to express feeling), does its best to infuse Minghella's tedious dialogue with passion, but it is a largely thankless and impossible task.

This extends also to Cal Rep's production team, which excels in a losing cause. Costume designer Beckette Aberle does a wonderful job creating medieval costumes, which glaringly accentuate class differences; scenic designer Michael Hsien-Ming Chen creates an evocative set of wooden planks, which mimics the austere production of the passion plays; and lighting designer Sean Hoban is impressive in establishing mood. However, when a local production team is more talented and inspired than an internationally-renowned author, the play is probably in trouble.

When the crucified Christ is hoisted aloft during the presentation of the passion play in front of an empathetic Queen Anne, it is a moving moment that is instead so unprofound that, expecting more, the audience hardly realizes the play has just concluded. After enduring two-and-a-half hours of this dissatisfying nonsense, however, one is merely relieved that it has.

The play runs through May 8. The Edison Theatre is at 213 E. Broadway. For tickets and more information, one may call (562) 432-1818.