"Pvt. Wars" a compelling introspective production

MIDDLETOWN - Although the play "Pvt. Wars" by James McLure is specifically about military veterans - their efforts to overcome adversities are experiences that all can identify with.

Set in the common room of a Veterans hospital, three psychiatric patients with different backgrounds share a common bond of trying to assimilate back into society. The fact that they can leave at any time is a theme that playwright James McLure returns to throughout the rich and interesting play.

Dana O’Neal plays Gately, the only character whose wound is visible, with a visible jagged long scar and bruise on his bald pate. Gately is working feverishly to repair a radio, whose parts are constantly pilfered by his two companions, the macho Silvo, played by Phil Godeck, and the patrician Natwick, played by Foster Reese.

Gately says if he can repair the radio, it is a sign that America's free enterprise system works, and would also mean that he can leave the hospital. O’Neal beautifully captures the essence of emotional instability in the character of Gately who frequently bursts into tears without much provocation, but also shows an emotional intelligence and keen insight into his the heart’s of his two friends.

Reese’s Natwick starts out almost too affected in his affectation, but improves as the play progresses. Natwick’s modus operandi is to initiate topics and then say: "I don’t want to talk about it." He isolates himself within himself, but then resents the fact that he is isolated. He is a know-it-all, and who hides in his mind, but is trapped by it too.

Natwick says: "I am an invention of myself," and that is his isolation.
When Gately says that coyotes mate for life, Natwick is compelled to one up him by saying that dolphins mate for life too. This isn’t true, since dolphins are notoriously promiscuous, but a telling insight into Natwick character, because this is how Natwick tries and fails to connect, through information rather than communication.

It is Gately who is the wise one, knowing just what to say at times. Natwick is trying to write an original poem, but constantly compares himself unfavorably to the likes of T. S. Eliot. When Natwick quotes from an Eliot poem: "Do I dare to eat a peach?" Gately is totally flummoxed by this and quizzes Natwick about the poem’s meaning. Just like trying to explain a joke, explaining a metaphor looses everything in translation, resulting in a hilarious exchange.

Similarly, the discussion of suicide that Natwick is contemplating and Gately is listening to, is hysterically, blackly funny, delivered with perfect timing, without missing the serious point.

Godeck’s is sensitive portrait of the man’s man, Silvo. If not for the war and his own life-altering wound, Silvo is the kind of man ill-prepared to delve into his inner psyche, and scares himself, and others, by frequently acting out. He is obsessed with sex, flashes the nurses often, and says at one point that "sperm has one hell of a sense of direction." Silvo does not, and therein lies his tragedy.

Each of the numerous scenes is like a mini play, punctuated with complete blackouts, which have an almost musical hypnotic rhythm to them, all seamlessly directed by Kathy Keena.

There are frequent sexual innuendoes and frank sexual talk, which makes this a show for adult's only. The program gives this show a PG-13 rating for language and sexual situations.

The newly formed Veterans Memorial Theatre Company is by veterans, dedicated to veterans, with plays about veterans, which doesn’t take sides, or deal directly with a political agenda. The theater at the Green Street Arts Center is an intimate studio space, with seating for about 55 people, which is perfect for this intense, well acted, fine play.

PVT. WARS

3 Stars
Theater: Veterans Memorial Theatre Company
Location: Green Street Arts Center, 51 Green St., Middletown
Production: Written by James McLure. Directed by Kathy Keena. Produced by Clark Bowlen and Michael Eck. Designed by Clark Bowlen. Stage managed by Ben Pitz.
Running time: 2 hours, with one intermission
Show Times: Friday and Saturday, Nov. 14 and 15 at 8 p.m.
Tickets: $15, $10 for veterans, seniors, and students. Call 860-623-6587 email them at vetstheatre@snet.net

ACTOR...CHARACTER
Dana O’Neal ... Gately
Phil Godeck ... Silvo
Foster Reese ... Natwick
Frank Schiavone ... Voice of Psychiatrist