The horrors of war are impossible to truly comprehend without experiencing them firsthand, and the toll on men’s psyches is equally difficult to convey to the uninitiated. When R.C. Sherriff wrote the award-winning play “Journey’s End” in 1928, he’d had a taste of the real thing as a soldier in World War I, so he was able to draw on his own wartime memories to tell a compelling story, but he didn’t show the battlefield and attempt to portray combat. Instead, he set the action in a dugout behind the front lines and focused on individual men and the way they coped with the worst ordeal of their lives. In doing so, he created a powerful anti-war message that draws on the human experience and allows the audience to empathize with the characters.
Jim Dunn, director of the Ross Valley Players’ production of “Journey’s End,” first saw the play in London in 2005, and “I was knocked out by it,” he says. He observes that it’s about a war that took place almost a hundred years ago, but has held up over time. “It’s a love story,” he says, explaining that the play looks at the way men lived, how they responded to the circumstances they found themselves in and how they tried to take care of each other. The interaction and relationships are key to the play’s success. Surroundings change, but behavior doesn’t, and that could well be the reason the play stands up so well. Its themes are timeless.
The action takes place in France on two days in 1918, when the troops are expecting German attacks to escalate. A young officer, Second Lieutenant Raleigh, played by Francis Serpa, arrives to take up duties with the company and discovers that his commanding officer, Captain Stanhope is an acquaintance from his hometown. Stanhope bears a weighty burden as a leader forced to send his men into situations where survival is unlikely, and as a consequence, he has become a heavy drinker. David Yen does a fine job of portraying Stanhope, capturing his changing emotions, which range from authoritarian to anger to resignation, as his character evolves and gradually reveals his vulnerability in the face of unrelenting stress.
Rounding out the cast are Tom Hudgens as Lieutenant Osborne, Sean Gunnell as Private Mason, Stephen Dietz as Second Lieutenant Trotter, Ross Berger in the dual roles of Lance Corporal Broughton and a German soldier, Philip Goleman as Second Lieutenant Hibbert, Steve Price as both Captain Hardy and the Colonel and Jeff Taylor as the Sergeant Major. Goleman is notable as a soldier attempting to confront crippling fear, and Berger’s turn as a German soldier shows that anxiety and longing for home are the same for soldiers everywhere, regardless of nationality. This is a strong cast, with every actor displaying a different aspect of the emotional impact of war, but relating to the other actors in often touching ways to create a larger picture.
Designer Ron Krempetz’s set is dingy, with water-stained boards serving as the dugout’s walls, real dirt on the floors and small details, such as a copper bucket under a cot and snapshots from home on the walls. It’s appropriately confining and primitive, but shows that as undesirable as it might be, it’s home for the duration, so the men make the most of it. A small opening to the outside shows the change from day to night and back again, as well as artillery fire from the battlefield nearby lighting up the sky. It serves to underscore the play’s world of contrasts: light vs. dark, silence in contrast to noise, and naiveté as opposed to reality.
Costumes by Michael A. Berg and property design by Maureen Scheuenstuhl, from the vintage Brodie helmets to the teacups on the bunker’s table, add historic elements. The program credits Wally Peterson of Military Antiques & Museum in Petaluma and David White of the College of Marin Drama Department for assistance, and the research and care in getting the details right result in a feeling of authenticity.
The sound design by Stephen Dietz is also effective, with periods of ominous silence punctuating the noises of battle, forcing soldiers who can never be well enough prepared to anticipate what might come next. Before the show and during intermission, wartime music reflects the mood of the era.
Dunn says that he loves military plays, and it shows. His direction, a strong ensemble of actors and attention to detail make “Journey’s End” immediate and riveting. It’s a dark play with little to relieve the tension, but is enlightening nonetheless, with truth in every performance.
“Journey’s End” runs Thursday through Saturday until February 16 at the Marin Art & Garden Center, 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Ross. Thursday performances are at 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday shows are at 8 p.m., and Sunday matinees are at 2 p.m. A “Talkback” with the director and actors takes place after the matinee performances on February 2 and 9. Audience members are welcome to participate.
Tickets are $26 general admission, $22 for seniors 61 and over and $13 for children under 18 and students with valid IDs. Thursday night tickets are $13 for children and students and $20 for adults.
To order tickets, go to www.rossvalleyplayers.com or call 415-456-9555, ext. 1.