Riverwalk Theatre's newest Black Box production is somewhat like a puzzle on stage - frustrating, perplexing and, at the very end, rewarding.
Written by legendary confusionist Harold Pinter and directed by the Interim Chair of MSU's Department of Theatre Frank Rutledge, "Ashes to Ashes" opened at the Creole Gallery, 1218 Turner St. in Lansing, last weekend and will run through Saturday.
Everything about the work - from the two-member cast, propless setting and unchanging lighting - screams simplicity in this short tale of a distressed couple that struggles to find the root of disturbing images that swim through the wife's head.
Gini Larson, whose most recent role was Mrs. Bennet in Lansing Community College's, "Pride and Prejudice," plays Rebecca. She is the estranged wife of Devlin, played by Brad Rutledge, whose last performance was as Van Helsing in "Dracula."
The two battle back and forth with both hurtful and loving language for 45 minutes, discussing past lovers, remembering the Nazi regime and hashing out Rebecca's chilling memories which seem to cloud her thinking.
All of this seems pretty natural for the plot of a play, but it's Rebecca's way of speaking and portraying her thoughts that starts to confuse the audience.
With only a handful of chairs on the stage, a plain black curtain backdrop and common clothes as the costumes - a suit for the gentleman and a black skirt and top combination for the lady - the audience is forced to focus solely on the conversation between the pair.
And this is not a simple Sunday chat.
It's more like a drug-induced conversation from "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas," with Rebecca blurting out nonsense sentences in the midst of her husband's chatter.
And it just so happens that right when you think you've gotten the hang of figuring out what's going on - are they reliving memories or is this a fantasy? Is she talking about the Hitler regime or an old flame? - Rebecca will interrupt and say, "By the way, there's something I forgot to tell you," completely opening up the floor for multiple renditions of her explanations.
But this is exactly how Harold Pinter's plays usually are.
The English playwright is known as one of the most complex post-World War II dramatists for his use of silence to increase tension and his way of introducing comical, confusing small talk to inch the piece along.
And the packed house at the Creole Gallery on Friday night seemed to enjoy the work - laughing at the obviously funny parts and guffawing at somewhat misleading or misunderstood areas.
But this is exactly what a Black Box theater production from Riverwalk Theatre is geared toward. With a slogan along the lines of, "Few characters, simple set, unusual, original and outside the box," the play's story seems fitting.
And for all of the mixed-up puzzle pieces that seem to fall together in the end and the simplicity of the set and costumes, "Ashes to Ashes" leaves a lasting impression that friends or fellow theater-goers can talk about far after the performance is over.
