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Girl in the Goldfish Bowl
By Morris Panych
Directed by Gregory Peters
Produced by New Leaf Theatre
At the Lincoln Park Cultural Center
2045 N. Lincoln Park West
Chicago, IL
Call 773-516-3546, tickets $15 ($12 seniors)
Thursdays thru Saturdays at 8 pm
Running time is 2 hours with intermission
Through April 5, 2008
Quirky memory play unsatisfying
New Leaf Theatre’s mounting of Canadian playwright Morris Panych’s Girl in the Goldfish Bowl is a baffling choice since the script is a muddled mess part childhood fantasy with absurdist tints with realistic elements. Is this a fable or what? It is supposed to be a tragicomedy but I found little humor as it presents as a dysfunctional family of cold folks with only the ten year old as someone with a heart.
Set in 1962 in a costal fishing village in Canada during the Cuban Missile Crisis, Panych’s play is narrated through the eyes of ten year old Iris (Kaitlin Byrd in a terrific winning performance). She is sad because her goldfish has died and was flushed down the toilet. Iris is a precocious child, wise beyond her years. We see her fantasize because she thinks nothing happens in her town, her city until the fish dies. The Missile Crisis and the collapse of her family starts just as a strange man, Mr. Lawrence (John Wehrman) appears from the sea.
This play has tone problems and conceptual problems. Is Mr. Lawrence real or an imaginary figure? As a memory play, we are not sure. The reaction of Iris’s family is cold and somewhat indifferent to the sudden appearance of a stranger. This family has a father, Owen (the stiff Ian Maxwell) who is a lost soul still suffering from war wounds and a mother, Sylvia (Kyra Leewandowski), who is leaving Owen. She is as cold as ice toward Owen and Iris. Add the sex starved alcoholic border, Miss Rose (Erin Shelton) and we have a most dysfunctional group. I can see how Iris needs to create likeable characters since she is surrounded by such bland people. My problem here is the script. Is this a fantasy or a weird, surreal tale? Who is Mr. Lawrence and why does he appear? Since the inevitable happens, Mr. Lawrence doesn’t appear to affect things much. I’m still wondering what this confusing work is all about. After two hours of action that is neither funny nor heartwarming, it has a tragic ending begging the question: what just happened over this evening? The tone and action seem to be leading toward a resolution then abruptly goes another way. I was left most unsatisfied. Kaitlin Byrd’s work as the child, Iris, was excellent. John Wehrman worked hard in an underdeveloped role for Mr. Lawrence. This play makes no sense.
Not Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed: March 6, 2008
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