It's a shame that Upstream Theater's Diary of a Madman has opened in the midst of a pennant run. In St. Louis, this brings down attendance at everything from cultural events to PTA meetings, and in the case of Diary of a Madman attention should be paid.
Indeed, in the month's second example of work from a classic Russian author, in this case, Nikolai Gogol, attention must be paid. Taken from a Gogol short story, it's the story of a struggling, desperate clerk in St. Petersburg in the days of the czars. Christopher Harris is the clerk, a character we meet as he falls flat on his face. The play is almost a monologue for Harris, who does superb work in a demanding role. The man, middle-aged by the standards of the day, or perhaps a bit beyond, lives a threadbare life in a Dickensian rooming house. His employment as a low-grade clerk in a government office gives him little satisfaction and none of the intellectual stimulation he feels he deserves.
At one level, this is a comedy - there are plenty of laugh lines at first, especially when he deals with the housemaid, one of three roles for the other cast member, Magan Wiles. At that point one is reminded of Ignatius J. Reilly, the creation of John Kennedy Toole (or Walker Percy) in A Confederacy of Dunces.
But his mentation begins to dissolve. We watch him crack apart, slowly, agonizingly and very accurately, for those who know such things. Wiles also plays the daughter of the big boss, appearing as what resembles an angel, white dress, arms uplifted, almost dancing, and we wonder if his attraction to her is the cause or the result of his disintegration.And while Wiles is good, Harris carries things so well that even though the madness is expected by the audience, it mesmerizes.
An unexpected bonus is Joe Dreyer's original score, adding to the depth of the work. And the set fits perfectly, although it's hard to understand why there's a cloud of dust arising every time the bed clothes are disturbed.
Leave it to Phillip Boehm and Upstream Theater to come up with another not-commonly-seen work that engrosses. Make room in your schedule to go.
Diary of a Madman
Upstream Theater
Kranzberg Arts Center
through October 20
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