See This: Blackbird at Victory Gardens Theater

By Suzy Evans in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 27, 2009 7:00PM

It is almost impossible to describe the production of David Harrower’s Blackbird at Victory Gardens Theater, except to say it will haunt your dreams and you have to see it.

Fifteen years ago, Una and Ray had a sexual relationship and were supposedly in love. Ray left Una one night after sex, and Una never recovered so she shows up at Ray’s office unannounced. While reconnecting with past lovers is always awkward, it’s worse for Ray because 15 years ago, Ray was 40 and Una was 12. “How many other twelve year olds have you had sex with,” Una screams at him, and Ray’s simple justification becomes, “You weren’t like other twelve year olds.”

An action that outside of this play can easily be dismissed as grotesque becomes a twisted moral question that playwright Harrower refuses to answer. There is no judgment here, and Harrower’s language coupled with Dennis Zacek’s subtly intricate direction makes it impossible for the audience to either. The erratic rhythms of the play’s language jar the ear at first, and it almost feels like high school English class where you neither understand nor care to understand the lines.

But then the language makes perfect sense and it no longer matters that the lines overlap and repeat, but the lyric captures your logic and emotions. And although morally wrong, the characters’ actions become rational and almost, relatable. Dennis Zacek’s direction enhances the near-perfect script as Ray and Una perform a sort of dance with every touch heightening the sexual tension. The action flows from emotionally-charged point A to sexually-charged point B with no obvious transition, and without realizing it, you begin to accept the characters as “normal.”

Both actors deliver incredible performances. The stage and screen veteran William Petersen makes Ray a surprisingly sympathetic character, still captivated and enchanted by Una’s wiles. Although the play takes place 15 years after the affair, Mattie Hawkinson looks like the 12-year old from Ray’s memory, making the resulting actions that much more disturbing. Hawkinson’s Una is the subject of our nightmares, and she symbolizes the ghosts we thought we had buried but who were only waiting to reappear and haunt us.

Blackbird extended through August 16 at the Biograph (2433 N. Lincoln Avenue). Be advised there is no intermission and absolutely no late seating.