REBECCA HALE
Reverb Editor
“Balm in Gilead,” the first in this semester’s Walter Gloor Mainstage Series, will pack a punch this weekend with an elaborate set, unconventional theatrical devices and its cinematic nature.
The small space of the Bartlett Theatre will be packed with 35 cast members alone, plus an audience come Friday, Feb. 27, when the play debuts. This will contribute to a very chaotic feeling that accompanies the mood of the play.
Written by Lanford Wilson and set in a dumpy Manhattan café, “Balm in Gilead” is a popular play set in the ‘60s about a group of ragged youths and their struggle to make it through life.
Tom Loughlin, chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance explained that “Balm in Gilead” is a unique play in the sense that it employs overlapping scenes and dialogue, as well as characters that aren’t necessarily the kind you’d find in other shows.
“These are pretty low-life characters: drug-addicts, junkies, hustlers, pimps, whores, thieves; the detritus of society, hanging around this run-down café in New York City,” he said.
Loughlin said that, “the thing that’s theatrically interesting about [“Balm in Gilead”] is that [Lanford Wilson] employed techniques that we would call more cinematic.”
By this, Loughlin is referring to scenic and speech overlap. In “Balm in Gilead,” there are many points where multiple characters are speaking over one another, as well as multiple scenes unfolding simultaneously.
“The characters don’t develop linearly from moment to moment,” he said. Loughlin referenced “slice of life” filmmaking, a type of film and theater that was born in the ‘50s, which was probably Wilson’s inspiration for “Balm in Gilead.” In this type of film, raw takes of real people were simply slapped together to make for a completely literal and realistic film.
Similar to “Balm in Gilead,” Loughlin explained that “you’re just seeing people come into this space, dealing with life as they find it, and trying to find survival for themselves in any way possible.”
In addition to these features, the Department of Theatre and Dance has another trick up its sleeve that has been unraveling in the making of “Balm in Gilead:” the scenic design.
Senior Chad Healy has been working hard on a set that would be something audiences have never seen before in Bartlett.
Director Dr. James Ivey said that, “when you come into this environment, it will not look like the usual theater. It will feel different.”
Healy has designed a set that encloses the theater from the top and sides — in other words, it’s like a wall and a ceiling that looms above the audience. This ceiling drop almost creates an optical illusion due to its curvature.
“He’s [been] making what looks like a café, and what looks like a familiar environment, [but] he’s making us call into question where we are,” Ivey said.
Of course, since the set covers the ceiling, lighting has proven difficult for lighting designer Evan Kickman. Some lighting will stream through windows in the ceiling, and others will shine from side and low lights.
Note that viewers shouldn’t expect to be sitting in the usual Bartlett chairs. The Department has pulled every possible piece of furniture from its stock warehouse — including benches, chairs, stools and couches — and scattered them around the theater for the audience to sit on.
“It’s my hope that is will be the kind of experience that our audiences haven’t seen,” Ivey said.
“Balm in Gilead” stars junior Eric Schutt as Joe and senior Kate Armstrong as Darlene. The show will play on Feb. 27 – 28 and March 5 – 6 at 7:30 p.m. and March 1 and 7 at 2 p.m. in Bartlett Theatre.