Ted Tally’s TERRA NOVA (presented by the Flat Earth Theatre @
Arsenal Arts Center through Feb. 28th) is one of those dark plays of
substance, wherein white men prove their mettle by invading or climbing or discovering
someplace where “no one has been before.” (Of course they mean no one with pale
skin.) The “new territory” in Tally’s play is Antarctica.
Poor Captain Scott of the British Royal Navy: He thought the frozen landscape
could be claimed for England.
Then a Norwegian beat him to it.
That’s all you need to know. The rest is soul searching, some
flashback scenes and a great deal of hallucination. I can clearly see why a
company of men would love to get their game on with TERRA NOVA. It has lots of
juicy parts and oodles of hazards for the actors to negotiate. And the company
delivers. National pride, moral rectitude and colonialism all take a righteous hit
from Tally: Dying for what you believe in isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
Captain Scott (Chris Chiampa) thinks, dreams and breathes his
competition, so much so that Amundsen (Samuel Frank) appears to him in his
imagination, taunting him each step of the way. Believe it or not, Scott’s men
marched on foot for 1600 grueling miles where Amundsen took along dogs to haul
his sleds (and then be slaughtered for food when provisions ran out). Amundsen
dismisses Scott’s contention that the Norwegians have engaged in
unsportsmanlike behavior: “There’s nothing more dangerous, Amundsen says, “than
a man of good intentions.”
The one female role in TERRA NOVA is Scott’s wife, deftly
portrayed by Kamela Dolinova. When he turns his thoughts to her, Scott softens
and we see his restless, vulnerable side. Chiampa summons bouts of bluster to
cover up his fears, where Frank as his rival towers over the Brits, physically
and metaphorically.
Director Jake Scaltreto gets lovely ensemble work from his
cast. Each man in Scott’s expedition is fully drawn so that we feel we know
them individually. James Hayward is the principled physician on the team. Kevin
Kordis is the hothead. Robin Gabrielli is so loyal to Scott and England that he
makes a foolish sacrifice to keep them on track and an impish Matt Arnold always
has a quip to ease another’s suffering. If only there were more evocative plays
like TERRA NOVA for a company of women! (Please don’t recommend ON THE VERGE to
me. I’m afraid I think it’s deadly.)
