Sexual perversity in Colonial Africa: 185 presents Churchill's 'Cloud 9'

Princeton seems to have a thing for Caryl Churchill. A Churchill play has been done for the past three years, a testament to the allure that the playwright's texts, with their psychological intricacies and shocking visual devices, have for a director. Two years ago, it was "Top Girls." Last year, it was "Mad Forest." And now Princeton returns once more to Caryl Churchill with the Program in Theater and Dance's stylized production of "Cloud 9," directed by Davis McCallum '97.

"Cloud 9" explores a wide array of themes, centering around the issues of imperialism and sexual repression. The first act, set in Victorian-era British colonial Africa, deals with a family whose domineering patriarch, Clive (Tommy Dewey '01), possesses so strong a sense of grandeur that his family must adjust itself accordingly.

His wife, Betty (Charlie Hewson '04), being what her husband would want in an ideal world, is played by a male. His son, Edward (Sarah Curran '02), the opposite of his father's wish for a manly son, is played by a female. The family's youngest child, Victoria, is literally nothing but a dummy. Even the family's black servant, Joshua (Nick Ordway '02), is played by a white actor because, as he says, "What white men want is what I want to be."

Entwined with these identity crises is the thick tension of an imperialistic atmosphere, and one of the only outlets left for the characters is sexual expression — which comes in a cornucopia of perverse relations. A brief litany:

Clive loves Mrs. Saunders (Teniqua Crawford '04), a neighboring widow. Betty loves Harry Bagley (Adam Friedman '01), an "explorer" friend of the family. Harry loves Edward, with whom he has had prior sexual relations, but Harry also has sex with Joshua. Ellen, the maid (also played by Crawford), loves Betty. Only Betty's mother, Maud (Bettina Adger '03), remains outside the love triangles, cynically remarking, "Young women are never happy."

The second act takes place circa 1980, though the characters from the first act have aged only 25 years. Now without the presence of a patriarchal figure, they still live in a time of sexual frustration.

Victoria (now played by Crawford), has grown up, and now has lesbian feelings for Lin (Adger), a bohemian divorcée with an unruly young daughter, Cathy (Dewey).

Victoria's husband, Martin (Friedman), worries about his wife's inability to derive pleasure from their lovemaking.

Betty (now played by Curran), becomes more in touch with herself — to put it euphemistically.

Edward (now played by Hewson) explores his homosexuality through a volatile relationship with Gerry (Ordway), a bluntly promiscuous gay man. Edward also experiments with Victoria and Lin.

Toward the end of the play, figures from both acts interact with each other, showing how certain emotional and psychological issues can move cyclically, in social patterns.

The performances by the cast are on the whole superb. Those familiar with Dewey's past performances will not be disappointed, as he shows here the usual brilliance that makes him the finest comedian on campus. Clive's moments of seriousness, however — particularly his negative reactions toward homosexuality — are perhaps the best part of Dewey's acting.

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Curran is nothing short of amazing in both her roles. Her British accent impeccable, her regal beauty lending itself well to both Edward and Betty, she commands the audience's attention as both a misunderstood son and an awakening woman.

Hewson, like Dewey, presents his finer acting with his serious side. His Edward is a carefully contrived mixture of pathos and sexuality. Hewson's commanding height makes Betty a persistent visual joke, and when she exclaims during a game of hide-and-seek, "I always get found straight away," the audience definitely believes her.

Newcomer Crawford is a great example of a freshman actor whose performance makes the viewer excited to see her in subsequent shows. In each of her three roles, she conveys similar honesty and a keen sense of delivery, and yet makes each role memorable. There is a shy longing in her Ellen, a pompous brashness in her Mrs. Saunders, a cool sensuality in her Victoria — all of which stay with the audience after the show.

Friedman and Adger also play their roles well. Friedman ably handles the shift from sinful lecher to frazzled husband, unsettling during one act and sadly comic in the second act. Adger's feisty Lin provides a nice but conflicting complement to Crawford's Victoria, and their bond makes Martin's position all the more interesting.

Perhaps the eeriest and most haunting performance comes from Ordway. Joshua hangs over the first act like a fog, delivering lines in a slow, icy voice. This voice becomes all the more haunting when, at Clive's behest, Joshua sings a Christmas carol that glorifies the subservient relationship between slave and master. Singing in a smooth, crisp falsetto, Ordway seems like something beyond a normal Princeton student; it is a truly mesmerizing moment.

The spookiness of his acting continues in the second act, as Gerry candidly recounts his brutally sexual escapades. From scene to scene, Ordway's characters help to establish the overriding dreamlike dynamic of the play.

Atmosphere emerges as the defining strength of the production. McCallum has chosen to transform the usually constricting space of the Matthews Acting Studio into a three-quarter stage. Audience members are placed around the action and consequently feel as if they are actually in the setting with the characters.

The lighting — like the other technical aspects of the show, designed by a professional — very effectively mimics sunsets, moonlight and specters, drawing the viewer in even more.

The marvelous set — with creaky wooden floor, pierced here and there with wild plant growth; with crumbling plastered walls; with Cathy's swing hung from the flies; with cumulus-dotted sky overhead — serves as both a stark reality and unbridled unreality.

Costumes wonderfully express both the constriction of the Victorian era and the changes of the late '70s and early '80s.

Music surges through the show — insistent drums pounding during the first act, funky tunes and guitar jamborees leaping out during the second.

All of these factors combine to create an encompassing exigency out of the tension-laced fishbowl in which the characters interact.

If "Cloud 9" has a weak point, it is the often unnecessarily slow pacing. Dramatic pauses are perhaps made too pregnant, and such license can override the impressive, lightning-fast scene changes.

In addition, the delicately produced somnolence of certain nighttime scenes can make this weakness all the more evident, and the viewer's focus can, as a result, split and lose itself amidst Churchill's famously chaotic writing style.

Fortunately, the pacing is consistent, and McCallum's commitment to his choice is admirable. But this decision is nevertheless one of the few deficiencies of an otherwise exceptional production.

Overall, the production succeeds in conveying not only the intricate and intriguing story of the play, but also the unique and stylized nature of Churchill's innovative post-modernist writing. McCallum, an intellectual powerhouse whose resumé reads like an epic poem, definitely does justice to a challenging text, and his actors duly succeed in giving the audience a singular, shocking, shining night of theater.

The Program in Theater and Dance presents "Cloud 9." Thursday - Saturday at 8 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m. Call (609) 258-3676 for reservations.