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The cast of FORCE (Photo by Adam Courtney) |
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WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT US: ON FORCE: “Aisling Arts' Force trilogy is the best new American play of the
season so far; I haven't been this caught up in or
affected by a piece of theatre since Angels in America.
The size and scope of the project contribute mightily to this:
clocking in at 6-1/2 hours, in three parts, Force
is indisputably epic in scale. (Kudos right now to conceivers Bryn Manion and
Wendy Remington, and to the dedicated and talented 17-member cast.) It's a
show that tackles big themes, too: nothing less than the essential human
question of our place in a complicated world. Each of us seems so
insignificant in the grand scheme of things, yet every move we make feels so
tremendously important. How do we reconcile such a paradox? Manion creates these characters
so vividly and honestly that it's impossible not to get caught up in all of their
lives. There are three plays that comprise Force—Wanderlust, Threshold, and
Convergence—and the writing is gorgeous; there's a scene in Wanderlust, for
example, in which Anne and her three siblings reunite, that feels uncannily
like a real family interacting in their dining room. Here's a sample from
Convergence, Jack confiding in a brother he hasn't really spoken to in years: I wanted to be an astronaut.
Chuck Yeager. Yeager was never an astronaut. I don’t think I knew that when I
was a kid. Maybe I did. I wasn’t stupid. Maybe the outer space part wasn’t
what appealed to me. Maybe it was Yeager. The Yeagerness of Yeager. The
respect without all the attention. The under the radar admiration. The skill.
The daring. The dedication. He broke the sound barrier for Cripesake. Annie
hates flying. A plane crashed in her backyard when she was a kid. A Cessna.
Two people died, and her family’s dog caught fire. They had to put it to
sleep. “ (Martin
Denton, NYTheatre.com) ON IMMINENT, INDEED: “The
story, however, takes a backseat to Manion's talents as both wordsmith and
director. Supported by a talented ensemble, Manion's script is snappy and
smart. She has an instinct for turning a phrase that impresses around every
corner. Her actors manage to play it splendidly, but the text is so chock
full of clever jokes, poignant observations and good old-fashioned wordplay
that, unless you're paying extraordinarily close attention, it's unlikely that
you'll catch it all. As a director, her eye is just as keen. Manion uses
every ounce of space in the theatre, and her stage pictures, especially when
accentuated by her visual concepts (Polly has never sat in a chair until she
meets MacHeath, having been chained to her brother's shop by a bolt of sleek,
pink silk) are just keenly exciting to watch.” (Ross
Peabody, NYTheatre.com)
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