By Madeleine Powell
Arts Editor
With its dark comedy and larger-than-life characters, the Surf City Theatre Company’s production of the award-winning play “God of Carnage” provided insight into human nature and its intricacies, despite its uncomfortably long run time.
“God of Carnage,” originally written by Yasmina Reza in French and translated into English by Christopher Hampton, won the 2009 Tony Award for Best Play. In 2011, Roman Polanski directed a film titled “Carnage” based on the same storyline as the play.
The story follows couple Annette (Branda Lock) and Alan Raleigh (Matt Landig) whose son attacks the son of Veronica (Samantha Barrios) and Michael Novak (Don Schlossman) with a stick, knocking out two of his teeth. As the two pairs discuss the best way to resolve the conflict, they succumb to similar childlike behavior themselves.
“God of Carnage” does not follow a central conflict; instead, it relies heavily on dialogue to further the story. This choice creates disjointed and scattered conversations which combine to form one haphazard plot. The desperate attempt to engage audience members was slightly unpleasant.
“God of Carnage” is riddled with dark, dry humor, but certain jokes flew over some viewers’ heads. One of the successful attempts at comedy occurred at Alan’s ill-mannered consumption of clafoutis, a French pastry, offered to him by his host. Audience members could not help but laugh at the sight of a grown man shoveling food into his mouth as his wife looked on in disgust.
The play’s storyline conveyed self-reflective truths about human nature by stripping its characters of their manners and inhibitions. Each of the characters serve as caricatures of actual people as they perform actions that are socially unacceptable out of frustration or anger, such as when Annette throws her husband’s phone into a vase of water because he refuses to stop using it. This exaggerated characterization of human behavior demonstrates how integral manners and common courtesy are in modern society.
The play was a little over 90 minutes without intermission, which felt unnecessarily long and caused audience members to lose interest as they watched scene after scene unfold. The extended duration was largely due to the several minute-long pockets of silence that broke up the dialogue. These attempts to build an awkward and uncomfortable atmosphere bored viewers and caused them to completely lose focus on the story in front of them.
The talents of the lead actors were obvious despite the play’s disappointing storyline. Barrios in particular skillfully developed her character, Veronica Novak, in a way that made audience members sympathize with her one second and despise her mere moments later. The performance highlighted her duality and her unique ability to play a complex and controversial character.
Though the plot itself was underwhelming, the same could not be said for the overall experience that the Surf City Theatre provided. The theatre space contained only three rows of seats in total, placing the audience members very close to the stage and performers. This staging made the production feel personal and engaged viewers by placing them in the action as it occurred.
Although the intimate theatre space provided an unrivaled viewing experience, “God of Carnage” ultimately missed the mark due to its lack of a clear focus and unreasonable duration, and even the extraordinary talents of the actors could not revive the lifeless plot.
Surf City Theatre Company’s next production, “An Evening of Durang,” will take place from May 25-27. Surf City Theatre Company is located in the 2nd Story Theatre at 710 Pier Avenue in Hermosa Beach.
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