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Review: The tight bond between brothers
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Steven Anthony Jones, left, and Jack Willis are excellent in American Conservatory Theater’s “Blood Knot.”
SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - Perplexing, intriguing, engrossing, Athol Fugard’s 1961 “Blood Knot” is one of his best plays. The American Conservatory Theater’s production focuses attention once again on the puzzle represented by the juxtaposition of the date and the judgment in the sentence above.
Fugard was not yet 30 when he wrote “Blood Knot,” his first substantial play — and it turned out so well, fully the equal of his works to come years later: “Sizwe Banzi is Dead,” “Master Harold ... and the Boys” among them.
The subject, as in all the white South African playwright’s works, is the suppression of the racist country’s black citizens. And yet, even more than in other Fugard plays, this heavy subject is not getting a heavy-handed treatment — there is psychology and deep insight into humanity (and lack of it), rather than preaching from the soapbox of the stage.
One of the play’s great accomplishments is in making its bold minimalism work so well. Two brothers — one black, the other lighter-skinned — live and struggle together; they become embroiled in a potential disaster from starting a pen pal correspondence with a white woman.
A simple story, a cast of two — now that’s truly minimal, but the writing, Charles Randolph-Wright’s surehanded direction, Alexander V. Nichols’ unit set, and especially the acting (Steven Anthony Jones, playing Zachariah, and Jack Willis as his brother Morris), with Tracy Chapman’s affecting original music written for the San Francisco production, combine to form something considerably larger than the sum of its parts.
There are elements of “Waiting for Godot” and “Of Mice and Men” in the play, but “Blood Knot” (the symbol of the brothers’ unalterable belonging together) is all Fugard.
Blood knot — a strong knot used for tying fishing leaders together — is also called a barrel knot, but that just won’t do here. This knot, with the ropes tied around each other several times to amplify strength, has the power of shared blood in it.
Morris returned to the pair’s shack, devoting himself to take care of the less educated, less focused Zach. The knot works both ways, and Zach pulls Morris back from the edge of despair.
Without speeches or pearls of wisdom, “Blood Knot” leaves the audience with a cathartic realization that brothers who are different in skin color and ability are still brothers above all — and perhaps that is true beyond the confines of the stage.
Flawless, strong delivery from the two actors does wonders for the production. One mild problem is Willis’ taking on and dropping (mostly the latter) the accent that would qualify him as a resident of Port Elisabeth, at the southern tip of the country. It would be less distracting if he stuck with only a slightly modified American accent, but consistently, especially because consistency is present in all other aspects of this laudable production.
IF YOU GO
Blood Knot
Where: American Conservatory Theater, 415 Geary St., San Francisco
When: 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays; 2 p.m. Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays; 7 p.m. some Sundays; closes March 9
Tickets: $20 to $80
Contact: (415) 749-2228 or www.act-sf.org
Comments from Examiner Readers
8:22 PM MST on Wed., Aug. 13, 2008 re: "Performer gets risqué in new act"
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re: "Theater: Hillbarn closes season with Elton John’s ‘Aida’"
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8:00 PM MST on Thu., Apr. 17, 2008
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10:40 AM MST on Sat., Oct. 6, 2007
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12:15 PM MST on Sun., Sep. 9, 2007
re: "A ‘Macbeth’ in the Macbuff"
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5:18 AM MST on Sat., Sep. 8, 2007
re: "A ‘Macbeth’ in the Macbuff"
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2:23 PM MST on Mon., Aug. 20, 2007
re: "A ‘Macbeth’ in the Macbuff"
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11:14 PM MST on Fri., Jul. 6, 2007
re: "A ‘Macbeth’ in the Macbuff"
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9:27 PM MST on Fri., Jul. 6, 2007
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9:09 PM MST on Fri., Jul. 6, 2007
re: "A ‘Macbeth’ in the Macbuff"
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6:47 PM MST on Wed., Jun. 20, 2007
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2:03 PM MST on Wed., Jun. 13, 2007
re: "A trifle of a ‘Tempest’"
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10:45 AM MST on Wed., May. 30, 2007
re: "A harrowing choice at Theater J"
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9:33 PM MST on Mon., Apr. 23, 2007
re: "Shakespeare’s bloodiest"
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re: "Shaking up Shakespeare"
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Bessica said:
The government should get out of marriage entirely. Straight or gay, we need good family law to protect children, we need contracts for interdependent relationships. Marriage is an important institution. Rename the legal part something else for EVERYONE. Many GLBT on the site **bisexualmingle c o m** want the same-sex marriage.
2 agree | 2 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
I thought it was a great production and both Alexa Ortega and Adam Barry were absolutely fantastic.
15 agree | 10 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
The Government Inspector: Quite poorly done. Actors unprepared. Line delivery mishaps. Overpriced. Prop failure at the end. It reminded me of sequels such as Oceans v11 - v13, where a group of well known actors use their names to draw a crowd and sell tickets. Uk. The result is a mediocre performance, in part because of too many cooks -- and some of these cooks, e.g. Geoff Hoyle are really good. Hopefully this review will save someone else the time and money.
15 agree | 10 disagree
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Parkside Poulegene said:
Re: High School Musical I just took my daughter Sharmuta to this show and we had to leave early! When we got home I took away all her "High School Musical" CD's and tee-shirts. If she even mentions the show again she's grounded for a month, and that goes for her other mother too. This show is really racist, homophobic and pro-Zionist and pro-Bush-Terror. There's too many white people in it. This show needs to be shut down and outlawed.
12 agree | 12 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Thank you for the first honest review that I have read on this production. The length of Act two was tortuous to sit through.
385 agree | 332 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
I bet the scene where Macbeth and Macduff are branishing their CLAYMORES is a hoot!
300 agree | 314 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Playing naked? Not really - the main character's body is covered by fur! As the reader before wrote the actor playing Macbeth is extremely hairy. It is quite strange to see how hairy a mans body can be... His body hair was the most impressing thing of the whole play.
324 agree | 293 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Bloody, Bold, Resolute, and Naked - AND HAIRY!!! I read an article that all actors were not allowed to shave any body hair three months before the play started to look "naturally". So it is impressive how hairy the actor playing Macbeth is - he has a furry chest and even a quite hairy back and bushy pubic hairs. It is very unusual today to see such a hairy actor fully nude, because normally an actor shaves at least his back hairs doing a nude scene on stage or in a movie... So big compliments to Daniel Eichner for presenting us his great furry body fully nude!
353 agree | 308 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Good review... one of the few critics able to articulate some of the problems with this show. I left at intermission and the lighting was troublesome. sometimes I wonder what the other critics are thinking --- if you are still curious fgo on Saturday afternoons when the tickets are "pay what you can."
387 agree | 345 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Munch claims "there is no denying" that the nudity in WSC's "Macbeth" "does little to enhance or elevate Shakespeare’s Scottish play." Well, the critics at www.PotomacStages.com and www.DCTheatreScene.com have taken the opposite view. Potomac Stages, in fact, wrote: "in no uncertain terms that this is a quality production that presents "the Scottish play" in a new and very effective light (or is that a new and very effective darkness?)." DC Theatre Scene wrote: "The actors’ nudity provides an extra dimension to their presentations...By being physically naked, these actors become emotionally naked as well. This production of Macbeth is a great gift to those who have the will to receive it. We are unlikely to see anything like it in the foreseeable future." So it seems the only thing there is no denying is that Munch doesn't speak for everyone.
405 agree | 314 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Tonight's performance of "Macbeth" started at 8:05 pm and was done precisely at 10:30. I'm not the best at math, but that seems like under 2 and half hours...not over 3 hours, which the critic claims the play to be.
391 agree | 356 disagree
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JaimeK said:
Shame Fat Pig wasn't given an actual review on the acting. There were some pretty phenomenal performances. Especially Erin Riley as Helen and Courtney Ryan as Jeannie. Very VERY good show.
517 agree | 405 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Closes in 4 days
449 agree | 400 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Why review it a few days before it closes and not mention its closing in the review?
441 agree | 430 disagree
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EdnBetty said:
We just returned from Titus Andronicus, the play that Kenneth Tynan called "the worst play Marlowe ever wrote". We expected gore and got it! Tsoutsouvas was also great, but Valerie Leonard was vamping it over the top. And that voice set my teeth on edge!
745 agree | 480 disagree
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Reader said:
Yes, "She Stoops to Comedy" at Woolly Mammoth is a treat!
545 agree | 464 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
Oh, we just a-DORed this show!
571 agree | 457 disagree
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