The Middle Ages: a Gurney Forebear
If we find ourselves in the overstuffed trophy room of a private club (lavish set by Bruce Lackovic) where a distracted young man in funereal black appears to be hiding from the ceremonies outside, and young woman, also in black – a sister? – finds him; if she then urges the man to go back and make his speech quickly, promising that after he does, it will be, “Over, out, and into the bar,” then Aha! We’re in Gurney country!
This discovery can allow us to anticipate other favorites of this popular playwright – WASP families observing dining rituals, having cocktails, old loves connecting with one another. But A. R.Gurney’s 1977 play has a somewhat different focus. The Middle Ages of the title refers, says Director Billie Cox, not to an age range, but to the “courtly love” of that time. So we learn that the young woman in black is not a sister, but a permanent sweetheart, and the young man, Barney, has enduring attachments both to her and to Robin Hood.
In other ways, though, The Middle Ages reveals its ancestry to Gurney’s later works. The Dining Room (1982,) The Cocktail Hour (1988,) Love Letters (1989) enlarge on themes that began here. This trophy room can stand in for the ritual dining table; the couple at the funeral might be the two who will write love letters over the years; Barney, the lead character and bad brother, will have his counterpart in the embarrassing son of The Cocktail Hour, while the absent good brother, Billy, stands for the powerful, unseen forces of convention and virtue.
Only four characters tell The Middle Ages’ story: Barney, his longtime love, Eleanor, his father, Charles, and Eleanor’s mother, Myra, who later marries Charles and becomes part of the family. Their interactions take place over thirty years, beginning in the late ‘40s, and demonstrate the social changes of those decades. When they are all younger, “El’s” mother impresses upon her daughter that she has “only five more years to stake her claim before everyone else goes off to college.” And Barney, though complaining about being imprisoned by his family history, doesn’t hesitate to tell El his name and position in the club.
Thirty years later, everything’s changed. Barney has relocated to San Francisco, where he is making a lot of money in a socially questionable occupation. El is a married woman with three children. Charles is in a wheelchair, but still giving orders, and the club is on the market because even though it has broadened its membership policy, nobody has the time or the money for such activity. “Even the Catholics don’t have money anymore.”
Their stories are told to each other, but also in revealing asides to the audience. Myra discloses her delight in the prospect of marrying Charles and says she wants “the most spectacular party since the Cerebral Palsy Ball!” An exasperated Charles declares his obligation to observe “the rules of hospitality” for Barney’s “guests,” but it’s clear that he’d rather suck lemons.
However, the tenderness that sometimes appears in Gurney’s work is not much in evidence here, largely because we don’t hear much from Barney. Barney is the lead character, but we never quite know what, other than resentment, makes him tick. Peter Smith of Kentfield depicts Barney as a playful and resourceful Peter Pan. Monique Sims of Tiburon plays Eleanor, whose character also grows older along with Barney’s. (Sims’ portrayal of the 14-year-old El is convincing without being a caricature.) Tamar Cohn of San Rafael portrays the gently conniving Myra, with Alex Shafer of Richmond as the stone-solid head of the family. Michael A. Berg’s fine array of age-and-occasion-appropriate costumes define and enhance the time frame.
The Middle Ages is the Ross Valley Players’ final production of its 80th season. It can be seen at The Barn Theatre in Ross through August 15, Thursdays through Sunday afternoons. Performances are at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays and 7:30 p.m. on Thursdays. Ticket prices range from $15 to $25, $15 on Thursdays. For directions or reservations, call the box office, 456-9555 or see the website, www.rossvalleyplayers.com.