114.
ASYMMETRIC
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The characters, of course, don’t have the names I’ve
mentioned. The indomitable female agent is Sunny Black (Kate Middleton); her washed-up
ex is Josh (Sean Williams); Josh’s former friend, who succeeded him as head of
the “Fifth Floor,” a boutique CIA department Josh founded, is Zack (Seth
Shelden); and the happy snipper-snapper is Ford (Rab Mattner). Zack’s last
name, by the way, is Quinn. An homage to “Homeland”? Just askin’ . . .
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| Kate Middleton, Sean Williams. Photo: Travis McHale. |
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| Seth Shelden, Sean Williams. Photo: Travis McHale. |
Mr. Rogers has mastered the spook chatter, with its hot-list houses, Venn-diagrams, asymmetric warfare, and exfiltrations, and his premise might be interesting to lovers of spy shows and novels, with its technobabble about the new drone’s scary capabilities (think neurotoxin projectiles, if you think I’m fooling). Critics of Pres. Obama’s drone strikes (the Commander in Chief looks on from a wall photograph) will appreciate the sniping about collateral damage, and the plot’s various power struggles as it twists one way and turns another may keep some guessing as to what’s coming next and who’s fooling who. But the frequent wisecracking and uneasy combination of espionage and marital discord—a lot of time is taken up with “why did you leave me” dickering—puts a heavy damper on a clock-ticking situation demanding a rapid response. As in many well-done film and TV spy dramas, dialogue flies by at mach speed, and you have to listen closely to catch the nuances, but ultimately, when the reason for Sunny’s becoming a turncoat emerges, you may wish to turn your own and flee to a safe house.
If a play like this is going to keep you glued (if not
strapped) to your chair, it needs to have the kind of high-intensity acting and
direction we associate with the best in the genre. The actors in ASYMMETRIC are
capable professionals, but, as directed by Jordana Williams, none convey the essential
sense of urgency and life and death commitment; as for romantic chemistry
between Josh and Sunny . . . All seem
instead to be playacting at spies and spy-catchers and barely any of it rings true,
including the apparent lack of suffering induced when a character gives instead
of gets a finger.
Travis McHale’s set (he also did the lighting), surrounded on two sides by the
audience, provides a space that serves efficiently as two offices, with areas above
for when the climactic op goes down in Reykjavik. Limited by the
theatre’s resources, this latter scene fails to work, just as the play’s
manipulative resolution (think any episode of “24”) leaves much to be desired.
Not to worry, the next episode of “Homeland” awaits on Sunday.
ASYMMETRIC
59E59 Theaters
59 E. 59 Street
Through December 6
ASYMMETRIC
59E59 Theaters
59 E. 59 Street
Through December 6
