‘BURIED CHILD’ SURFACES AT A NOISE WITHIN

REVIEW: BURIED CHILD

BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO

I remember picking up Sam Shepard’s play Buried Child from the, now closed, Samuel French Bookshop on Sunset Blvd., a couple years ago. Then upon reading this strange, dark and humorous play, I remember thinking: What just happened? Who are these people? How could a whole family be so unlucky? Now as part of their 2019-2020 season, A Noise Within mounts a chilling and powerful presentation of Shepard’s 1979 Pulitzer Prize winning drama. Seeing it for the first time on stage at A Noise Within is everything I envisioned and so much more.

Set in an old farmhouse in Illinois in 1978, on the surface Buried Child is about a family with a dark secret that resurfaces after many years of repression and denial. A narrative that anyone with a family can relate to, after all, what family doesn’t have secrets, or struggle maintaining a family reputation or legacy? Going deeper, the play is about loss and suffering—how people cope when the American dream never comes. This may sound like a weighty piece and it is to some extent, but it’s also completely relatable and thoroughly engaging. Shepard wastes no time, he gets right to the point, taking audiences deeper into the physical and mental situation of this broken family from scene to scene—no matter how f*cked up, you can’t look away. 

Director Julia Rodriguez-Elliott maintains the pace of Shepard’s work while casting subtle shadows throughout the work to underscore symbolism of both the realistic and surrealistic elements. The attention to detail in this production is astounding—a gorgeous set by Sibyl Wickersheimer, magical lighting by Ken Booth and heartrending performances from each of the cast members. 

Geoff Elliott plays the patriarch of the family, Dodge, Elliott portrays this broken man with every ounce of his being—he’s able to conjure glimmers of the man Dodge once was, making what he’s become even more depressing. Debora Strang as Dodge’s wife Halie embodies the spirit of her denial with a conviction so strong it’s simultaneously sad and funny. The eldest son Tilden, played by Michael Manuel is an important character who doesn’t have too many lines; however, Manuel imparts this character’s passivity of life with staunch physicality that communicates volumes.              

There’s something about Buried Child that makes it the perfect fall play. Maybe it’s the rural setting that evokes fields of corn; maybe it’s the family themes so close to the holidays; or maybe it’s the stormy weather in the play. Whatever the case may be, there’s no better time and place to experience this play—it’s a production so strong that you’ll taste the sweet corn, smell the rain, feel the need to wipe mud of your shoes after it’s over, and thank the Lord that your family is not as dysfunctional as the one in the play.

TICKETS AND MORE INFORMATION

DATES: October 13 – November 23, 2019

TICKETS:

Buy Online: www.anoisewithin.org

Buy Via Phone: 626-356-3121

Purchase at Box Office: 3352 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107

Regular Prices: Single tickets from $25, Student Rush with ID an hour before performance $20.