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The Retreat from Moscow
By William Nicholson
Directed by BJ Jones
At Northlight Theatre
9501 N. Skokie Blvd
Skokie, IL
Call 847-673-6300, tickets $56
Tuesdays at 7:30 PM
Wednesdays at 1 & 7:30 PM
Thursdays at 7:30 PM
Fridays at 8 PM
Saturdays at 3 & 8 PM
Sundays at 2:30 &7 PM
Running time is 2 hours, 10 minutes with intermission
Through June 18, 2006
“I don't want a sunny marriage. I want a real marriage.”
---Alice, after "sunny" is the adjective Edward uses with marital contentment
Powerful look at a disintegrating marriage rings with truth
When, after thirty-three years, a couple falls out of love, how does one communicate that it is over? That is the crux of William Nicholson’s smart drama. Alice, Rondi Reed in complete command of the stage, wants to get her husband to respond to her with enough emotions to make her feel that they still have a ‘real marriage.’ Edward (Anderson Matthews) is the emotionally exhausted history teacher tired of Alice’s prodding, nagging and demanding encounters. He prepares to depart the marriage by finding another woman to live with as his “Retreat from Moscow.” Edward is the stiff-upper-lip British gentleman so stoic that he was raised to not desire things for himself. He defends the status quo while Alice demands recognition at any costs including use of hysteria and confrontation.
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This emotional battle rages between the couple that has the thirty-two year old son, Jamie (John Hoogenakker) in the middle of the dispute. Jamie is the neutral son trying to pacify both parents. The early scenes where Alice quotes poetry and attempts to argue with Edward and tries to infuse Jamie with the Catholic beliefs are touching and comic allowing Rondi Reed’s strong stage presence to shine.
When Edward is finally pushed into revealing that he is leaving Alice, she is devastated since she never considered the possibility that her marriage would ever end. The failure of the couple to communicate their feelings honestly looms large. Jamie tries to be supportive to both parents while still asking each for their emotional support. This realistic and plausible drama is delicate and devastating as a look into the trauma produced by a divorce on all parties.
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The gray areas where there is plenty of blame to go around making each partner responsible for the breakdown of communication that erodes the marriage. Edward should have expressed his needs sooner and Alice should have found a better way to express her wants years earlier before the marriage lost its magic. This is a chilling portrait of the demise of a marriage where a choice is made either out of cowardice or as an act of courage by one partner that has sweeping effect on all members of the family. Do we make life altering decisions to survive at any cost despite who gets hurt or is keeping a lost love together supreme?
Jamie tries to mediate and be supportive to both parents at a cost to his emotional well being. Does each participant surrender or retreat to one another by ending the marriage? Can each person eventually adjust and survive? Playwright William Nicholson offers insights into this perplexing dilemma.
The superb performances from Rondi Reed, who mixes hysteria with stinging humor and Anderson Matthews’ eloquence and mild manner and John Hoogenakker’s controlled strength, make Retreat From Moscow an immensely moving drama.
Recommended
Tom Williams
Tom99@chicagocritic.com for comments
Talk Theatre in Chicago podcast
Date Reviewed May 17, 2006
Jeff Recommended
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