{"id":10192,"date":"2014-02-12T05:23:17","date_gmt":"2014-02-12T13:23:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=10192"},"modified":"2014-02-12T05:30:19","modified_gmt":"2014-02-12T13:30:19","slug":"yankee-tavern-at-main-stage-west-sebastopol-ca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/yankee-tavern-at-main-stage-west-sebastopol-ca\/","title":{"rendered":"Yankee Tavern at Main Stage West, Sebastopol CA"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Reviewed by Suzanne and Greg Angeo<\/strong><\/p>\n

Members, San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle (SFBATCC)<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong>Photos by Elizabeth Craven, Main Stage West<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Truth is Out There<\/strong><\/h2>\n

With more than 30 plays under his belt, acclaimed contemporary playwright Steven Dietz<\/strong> has seen his work performed in regional theaters all over the country and the world. Dietz specializes in tense psychological dramas with political and social themes. His dark thriller Yankee Tavern<\/em> was first performed at the ACT Theatre in Seattle, WA in 2007, and is now being presented as the 2014 season opener at Sebastopol\u2019s Main Stage West.<\/p>\n

Set in a tavern near the ruins of the World Trade Center a few years after the 9\/11 attacks, the play seeks to raise questions about the \u201cofficial\u201d explanation of events surrounding the attacks and the towers\u2019 destruction.\u00a0 The central character Ray (John Craven<\/strong>) is as fond of mysteries as he is of booze. Over the years he\u2019s fallen under the feverish spell of every conspiracy theory and urban legend known to man, endlessly expounding to whoever is within earshot, including talk radio hosts.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

From left, Tyler Costin and John Craven<\/p><\/div>\n

His favorite hangout is the Yankee Tavern. It\u2019s just blocks from Ground Zero and it\u2019s a run-down wreck. On the floors above it are empty, decrepit apartments abandoned by all but the rats, and the ghosts, and Ray, who lives there. Adam (Tyler Costin<\/strong>), the twenty-something proprietor and son of the tavern\u2019s late owner, is trying to sell it and get on with his life. Ray was his father\u2019s best friend, but he\u2019s getting on Adam\u2019s nerves with his crazy stories and mooching of drinks. The final straw comes when Adam\u2019s fianc\u00e9e Janet (Ilana Niernberger<\/strong>) finds out that Ray has invited scores of dead friends to their wedding. Ray insists that the ghosts will all be there in spirit, wishing them well. Costin, fresh from a starring role in Brigadoon<\/em> at Spreckels, gives a strong and lively rendering of Adam. Niernberger, who\u00a0displayed considerable talent performing with Craven in last year\u2019s Mauritius <\/em>at MSW, was left with not much to do in the role of Janet.<\/p>\n

Yankee Tavern<\/em> is an odd, spotty patchwork of sly humor, suspense and paranoia. The real pleasure of the show is watching Craven tear the place up in a tour-de-force performance as the unkempt, fidgety Ray. \u00a0Craven keeps the audience mesmerized; even the smallest gesture is touched with nuance and meaning. At first, Ray seems to be on an earnest quest for the truth. We come to realize it\u2019s the allure, the belief that things \u201care not as they seem\u201d that keeps Ray hooked. \u00a0Until one day.<\/p>\n

The tavern has seen tough times since the attacks, with few customers, but there\u2019s one regular. An enigmatic and much-too-quiet fellow, Palmer\u00a0 (Anthony Abate<\/strong>) suddenly reveals some frightening insider knowledge about the 9\/11 attacks that implicates young Adam.\u00a0 At this point the story\u2019s center of gravity makes a head-spinning shift that could have come straight from the X-Files.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Ilana Niernberger and Anthony Abate<\/p><\/div>\n

Direction by MSW Artistic Director Elizabeth Craven<\/strong> is brisk and energized, allowing realistic emotional reactions to show through the dialogue. There\u2019s only one scene, in the second act, where perhaps\u00a0 more tension would have helped. The set design by local legend Paul Gilger<\/strong> is a compact marvel of clean lines and atmospheric backdrops, representing the eerie skeletal remains of the Twin Towers. He said he wanted to convey an otherworldly quality to the tavern and its denizens, and in this he succeeds beautifully.<\/p>\n

Even though the ending is a bit muddled and falls off a short cliff with no clear resolution, the story still has its rewards. Yankee Tavern\u2019s<\/em> appeal lies in the fact that people have always wanted to feel they are part of an exclusive group with special access to the truth. Maybe the truth is never revealed, but that\u2019s almost beside the point. It\u2019s the journey in pursuit of truth that keeps them going, and it\u2019s the fuel that propels the entertaining intrigue of Yankee Tavern<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Now you know it\u2019s a meaningless question <\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 To ask if these stories are right<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Cause what matters most is the feeling you get <\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0When you\u2019re hypnotized<\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (from \u201cHypnotized\u201d by Bob Welch\/Fleetwood Mac, 1973)<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When: Now through February 23, 2014<\/strong><\/p>\n

8:00 p.m Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays<\/strong><\/p>\n

5:00 p.m. Sundays<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tickets $15 to $25<\/strong><\/p>\n

Main Stage West<\/strong><\/p>\n

104 North Main Street<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sebastopol, CA 95472<\/strong><\/p>\n

(707) 823-0177<\/strong><\/p>\n

www.mainstagewest.com<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reviewed by Suzanne and Greg Angeo Members, San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle (SFBATCC) \u00a0Photos by Elizabeth Craven, Main Stage West \u00a0 The Truth is Out There With more…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"yasr_overall_rating":0,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-10192","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-greg-suzanne-angeo"},"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":true,"span_bottom":"