Playhouse offers premiere of "God of Carnage"

Photo

Photo by: Dustin Livesay

From left, James McClellan, Brandy Johanntges, Holly Ceci and Frank Martin star in “God of Carnage” at the Youngstown Playhouse.

By GUY D’ASTOLFO

dastolfo@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

The Youngstown Playhouse will begin the second half of the season with “God of Carnage,” which opens Friday in the Moyer Room.

It will be the regional debut of the play written by Yasmina Reza and made into a 2011 film by director Roman Polanski.

“God of Carnage” takes place entirely in the living room of an apartment, where a meeting between two couples hashing out a playground fight by their children turns ugly.

John Pecano is directing the Playhouse production. The cast consists of Holly Ceci, Brandy Johanntges, Frank Martin and James McClellan.

Pecano discussed the play in this question and answer exchange:

Q. First off, “God of Carnage” seems like a perfect fit for the intimate Moyer Room — putting the audience into that tense, small apartment. How will the action on stage permeate the room? Will it make for discomfort?

A. This show really is a perfect fit for the Moyer Room. It’s a small cast of four people, which takes place in real-time in a living room. Working on the set design, I really wanted something minimal. The script even states “nothing superfluous.” Since the dialog is so fantastic, I just wanted the audience to focus on that. The small space will allow the audience to feel more like voyeurs, which really works for the show. There may be one specific moment where there’s a bit of “discomfort,” shall we say, but it’s also a very funny moment, so overall, I believe they’ll enjoy it.

Q. In your view, what is the message of “Carnage”? How do you bring it out and what will the effect be on the audience?

A. I’m not sure there’s one specific message in “Carnage.” I suppose overall, it’s about how sometimes adults can and often do act like children. It’s much more than that, though. We watch four believable characters discuss and then fight about an incident that occurred between their sons. We watch allegiances between the characters form and then break. There is no character that is right or wrong. They all have some good traits and some horrible ones, and the audience gets to watch them trickle out throughout the show. I believe the audience will enjoy the satire and comedy in the script. The title makes the show sound so serious, but it really is a comedy. Pacing and naturalness are the two major things we’ve worked on for this show. We’ve all seen people bicker, so it’s important to convey that in a realistic manner.

Q. It seems like this play lost some of its steam after the Polanski film sort of flopped. Is it a script that’s better left for stage performance?

A. I’ve actually intentionally not seen the film, as I don’t like to go into a show with any preconceived notions. Our presentation was actually supposed to happen last year, but the rights got pulled. I assumed it was due to the impending release of the film. Having worked on it, though, I can see that some things may be lost on screen. Certainly the voyeuristic feeling of listening in on an argument would lose some of its effect. There’s also a bit of theater magic that wouldn’t have such an impact on film, but I’ll leave that a secret.