Monday, December 2, 1996
THEATER:
Drama sprinkles comedy into the darker side of gay lifestyleBy
Cheryl Klein
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
A large country house in upstate New York, eight longtime
friends and a lake for skinny-dipping: It’s the perfect setting for
zany hijinks and touching revelations. It’s the perfect setting for
love, valour and compassion.
Terrence McNally’s Tony award-winning comedy about eight gay men
and one unforgettable summer, titled "Love! Valour! Compassion!"
opens Tuesday at the Geffen Playhouse in Westwood. Mitchell
Anderson, who plays the young, blind Bobby Brahms, explains that
the play’s exclamation point-peppered name corresponds to the
themes behind each of its three acts.
"The first act sets up the love between seven of these guys,"
Anderson says. "The second act is sort of about everybody’s foibles
and what they have to overcome, so the valour part is about
overcoming obstacles. And the compassion at the end in the third
act is about forgiveness."
As Bobby confronts his infidelity to his partner and the death
of his sister, another character, Buzz Hauser, must face his own
impending death from AIDS.
"The character Perry is (Buzz’s) best friend," says Mario
Cantone, who plays Buzz. He explains that the disease is sometimes
a taboo subject, especially among the character’s closest friends.
"There’s a tension and a resentment thing going on here and there
because he can’t talk about Buzz’s disease. … There’s a little
tug of war going on emotionally about that."
Cantone asserts that the older generation of gay men may relate
to friendships that have lasted decades, but are torn apart by
AIDS.
"I don’t want to say the older they are the more people they’ve
lost, because that may not be necessarily true. But the horrible
thing is that the younger generation  it’s scary. They don’t
even get a life without having to worry about AIDS. Straight or
gay," Cantone says.
So where is the comedy in the play? Well, just try to picture
Buzz wearing nothing but an apron and high heels while belting out
show tunes.
Cantone insists that he is different from Buzz in many ways
 Cantone is a film buff, for example, while Buzz declares
that movies "are an excuse for people to eat popcorn while they’re
being entertained." Nevertheless, a little of the musical
theater-loving Buzz seems to have rubbed off on Cantone.
"UCLA seems like a very cool environment," Cantone says of the
play’s newest venue. "Very relaxed, very do- what-you-want-to-do."
From here he breaks into song: "’Go where you wanna go, do what you
wanna do!’ That’s the Mamas and the Papas."
Likewise, Anderson has learned from his character. Playing a
blind person was difficult, since Anderson had to keep his eyes
open, but it was a challenge he welcomed.
"Communication is something like 70 percent sight," Anderson
says. "The clues that you get from somebody else come from their
face and their hand gestures. You train yourself to not be reactive
to things that are stimulating your visual sense.
"In a way, oddly enough, it puts you more in the play. There’s a
sense of reality that I never found before … because sometimes
when you’re playing a character, the visual clues you get from
other people, from the audience  your mind can wander much
more easily. You’re thinking about your laundry, your shopping
list. But with this character, I’m concentrating much more."
A closer look led Anderson to believe that Bobby is much more
complex than the young, innocent angel everyone sees him as.
"He’s used his blindness sometimes as a weapon, as a
manipulative tool. He’s unfaithful to his partner, which is in a
way out of character and in a way not. He says, ‘I’m not very
strong that way,’"Anderson explains. "He’s got some darkness to
him. Like we all do."
Besides a few darker issues, "Love! Valour! Compassion!" also
has scenes that some audiences may find shocking. The characters
shed their clothes repeatedly, but Anderson insists that this is
only natural in an isolated house among close friends. And if that
explanation is not satisfying, there’s always the symbolic
route.
"It’s about these guys escaping from their life and getting into
a place where they feel safe," Anderson says. "And it makes sense
that they would shed the world outside and be comfortable in that
place."
Still, "I don’t know how the L.A. audiences are going to react,"
Cantone says. "I think people are a little more conservative out
here in California."
Cantone can compare the two coasts because he, along with
director Joe Mantello and two other members of the ensemble, staged
the Broadway version of "Love! Valour! Compassion!" Though
experienced in both stand-up comedy and serious drama, Cantone was
hesitant about taking over the role first played by Nathan
Lane.
"I couldn’t watch him too much because it made me nervous and
intimidated because he would get these huge laughs," Cantone
confesses. "I could do it dramatically to make it work for me, but
comedically I was just hoping I could be as funny as Nathan."
The enthusiasm that both actors have toward doing the play
attest to McNally’s skills as a writer and Mantello’s as a
director.
"As an actor you do many jobs and you make your money. But once
in a while you get to do something like this," Anderson says. "And
I actually saw this on Broadway. And I said, ‘I’m going to play
that role.’ And I just went after it."
THEATER: "Love! Valour! Compassion!" opens Tuesday at the Geffen
Playhouse in Westwood. Tickets cost $27.50 to $37.50 for general
admission and $15 for students. Information: 208-5454.
The Geffen Playhouse
The cast of "Love! Valour! Compassion!" The play, directed by
Joe Mantello, opens Tuesday.