Dan's Papers - June 6, 2008 - review: top girls

Manhattan Theatre Club's impressive revival of Caryl Churchill's 1982 groundbreaking play Top Girls marks the British playwright's Broadway debut - 25 years after the play's celebrated opening at the Public Theater. Directed by another Brit, James Macdonald, the well acted production is a bold reminder of Churchill's skillfull early work. Top Girls, though overly talkative, is an adroit examination of the legacy of feminism - both the accomplishments and the sacrifices inherent in the struggle to succeed in a man's world.

The evening begins with a surreal dinner party set in a London restaurant during Margaret Thatcher's reign as Prime Minister. Marlene (Elizabeth Marvel) is celebrating her recent promotion to general manager of the Top Girls temp agency with real and fictional female guests from the worlds of art, literature and history. Those assembled are a colorful group that includes Isabella Bird (Marisa Tomei), a Victorian explorer; Lady Ninjo (Jennifer Ikeda), a Buddhist nun traveling Japan on foot and a former emperor's courtesan in the 13th century; Pope Joan (Martha Plimpton), who lived her life disguised as a man, only to be stoned to death when she gave birth to a baby girl during a ceremonial procession; the abused Patient Griselda (Mary Catherine Garrison), an obedient wife from a sad story in Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales; and dim witted Dull Gret (Ana Reeder), a warrior in an apron and armor, who led women to battle the demons of hell in the Brueghel painting, "Dulle Griet."

In forceful, overlapping dialogue, Churchill has the women boastfully recount their particular challenges as they rose to powerful positions. She weaves in a provocative array of themes and ideas. But what stands out significantly from their stories, are the losses, especially the emotional toll from leaving children and people behind, making it profoundly clear that courage and compromise are necessary components if women want power in a male dominated world.

The last two acts are very telling, as we follow Marlene first to the Top Girl employment agency and then to the home and child she abandoned in her sister Joyce's (Tomei) care. We get to see Marlene in action, cementing her new position with the other women at the agency, while they interview applicants like an uneasy Louise (Mary Beth Hurt), coaching them on how to get ahead. And then we see the working class roots she left behind when she plays aunt to her own 16-year-old daughter Angie (Plimpton). The contrast between Marlene, the energetic go-getter, and Joyce, her trapped, resentful sister, is painfully evident.

The fully committed performances are convincing portraits delivered by an outstanding ensemble (that also includes Mary Beth Hurt) of award winning actors in theater and film. With the exception of Marvel, they all take on more than one role. To single out any one of them would be a disservice to the superb collaborative effort.

Bravo to MTC for the courageous choice of bringing Caryl Churchill's unique take on women and power to Broadway. Churchill makes it clear that life has inherent risks and like her characters, we're defined by our choices. Not choosing, she reminds the audience, is, in itself, a choice. Top Girls is certainly not theater for the laid back subscriber. It is dense theater that makes the audience think and question, beautifully served by an accomplished cast of women at the top of their game.

Theater critics Barry Gordin and Patrick Christiano are members of the Drama Desk. Barry is an internationally renowned photographer and Patrick is artistic director of SilvaRoad Productions. Visit their website at www.theaterlife.com