We are two wild and crazy European geniuses

JULIA TIERNAN/YH Einstein (Blake Edwards, SM '02) and Picasso (Benjamin Woodlock, ES '02) are gettin' cubist wit it

In reviewing this year's Yale Dramat Freshman Show, Picasso at the Lapin Agile, I found it difficult to forget that this production is an all-freshman project. The play's director, actors, and production staff are all freshmen, attempting to create their own vision in a sea of Yale theater peopled by everyone from the naïve amateur to the most polished performer. Appropriately, this year's play is by a first-time playwright, comedian Steve Martin, in his initial attempt at a full-length dramatic work. How, then, does one look at this production? As a prelude for what is to come, the production gleams with potential. Each actor has his or her moment of dazzling talent, and the direction, lighting, and set design all show glimmers of brilliance. Unfortunately, as a finished product is not brilliant, but nonetheless a noble effort.

Picasso at the Lapin Agile takes place in a bar in Paris in 1904. The play asks the question, "What if Einstein and Picasso met for one night at the time just before they each produced the masterpieces which would make them famous?" Each man sees himself as the voice of the future, and in this first decade of the 20th century, both men see themselves as prophets for a new world view.

The play explores the pair's imagined relationship with one another, with women, with the people who populate the bar, and with the world at large, including their relationship as actors with the audience before them. While witty and thought-provoking, Picasso at the Lapin Agile is somewhat erratic in its ability to entertain. It is a play which makes the mistake of trying too hard to find unity where there is none, a lot like looking for constellations of stars on a cloudy night.

The same can be said of this production as a whole. While the actors have clearly put a tremendous amount of effort and intelligence into their individual roles, the ensemble lacks a cohesive structure, leaving the actors stranded on stage in their own worlds of memorized lines and character work. Whether this is a fault of the direction, a function of Martin's play, or a question of the actors themselves, is difficult to judge. However, both pacing and plot suffer as a result, leaving the audience stuck between greatly enjoying the moments which work and sitting silently through the moments which do not.

Richard Silverstein, SM '02, as Freddy the bartender, is expressive and quick, bringing liveliness to what might have otherwise been a dull character. Andrew Sessa, MC '02, is amusing as the aging Frenchman Gaston, with his ruminations on women and his perpetual inability to control his bladder. Caolan Madden, TD '02, does a fine job as Suzanne, the young woman infatuated with Pablo Picasso (Benjamin Woodlock, ES '02), who learns the hard way what it means to love an artist. Laurel Pinson, DC '02, as the art buyer and critic Sagot, is quite good, although her flamboyance could have been doubled and would only have added to the role. Mei Yin Wang, DC '02, does a solid job as the waitress Germaine, and Woodlock does Picasso justice as he scribbles furiously on a cocktail napkin. Jonathan Wolf, SM '02, entertains as the mad inventor Schmendiman, and Sarah Treem, BR '02, does a lovely job with her two roles, managing to play both sophisticated glamour and schoolgirl giddiness with equal skill. Joshua McNeil, MC '02, is both funny and touching in his portrayal of the mysterious visitor from the future (think Memphis).

But the strongest force of the production comes in the form of Blake Edwards, SM '02, as Albert Einstein. Edwards is wonderful, giving each line the exact right inflection, using the raise of an eyebrow or the tilt of his head to convey thoughts and emotions Martin never intended but should have. Edwards reminds the audience what it means to have true talent as an actor--to take a role and make it your own. Unfortunately, even this ability gets lost in the shuffle, muted by the awkwardness of the production as a whole.

On the surface, Picasso at the Lapin Agile is a fine play, performed with skill and effort. But it could have been so much more.

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