Martin Millerchip THEATRE REVIEW Struggle of the Dogs and the Black by Bernard-Marie Koites. A Vancouver Playhouse produc- tion directed by David Hemblen. To June 4. Tickets: 280-3311. HE SOUNDS in the darkness press me back into my seat. They possess a demonic inten- sity that borders on nightmare. The decibel level dominates paintully, but it is the primal nature of the screams and rhythms that has an almost physi- cal presence. Greg Ruddell’s sound design for Struggle of the Dogs and the Black powerfully evokes the mys- tery and the fears that lie at the heart of French playwright Bernard-Marie Koltes’ script. Would that the rest of this Vancouver Playhouse production packed the same punch. . 1 wish | could report different- ‘ly; because the script itself and “some of the acting deserve more. But the disappointing truth of this production is that it consis- tently falls into the abyss between naturalism and symbol- ism. It establishes neither the sus- "pense inherent in the smaller, surface, story nor a consistent means (or form) of communicat- _ ing the larger, mythic truths. It would be easy enough to blame director David Hemblen but, since he was a guest direc- tor, | would first like to know how much of the design for this production he inherited. The story takes place ina West African construction site: A European enclave, artificially iNuminated and surrounded by wire and armed guards in the middle of the darkest continent. Initially, designer Ken MacDonald's unfinished, ferro- concrete bridge piers provide a powerful backdrop to the play's examination of colonial exploita- tion, Mute statements of white strength soaring above the rect mud of Africa. At the end, they stand as rust or blood-streaked grave markers, abandoned and meaningless. Around the roots of this gov- ernment-led, foreign contract is fought a battle for the body of a black worker who has been killed on the job. The strangers in this strange land are project boss Horn (Bill Dow) and chief engineer Cal (Morris Panych). Complicating the precarious balance of the white bosses is the arrival of French chambermaid Leona Jennifer Clement). Waiting, always waiting, at the edge of the light is Alboury (Alvin Sanders) who has come to collect the body of-his “brother.” Who and what these charac- ters ultimately represent should become more important than the struggle that is acted out before us. And | think this is where too many things start to go wrong for the playhouse. Bill Dow, fine actor that he is, is far too young to be playing “old man” Horn. So we never see the kinder, gentler greybeard who personifies the paternalism . that is as insidiously evil as any other form of imperialism. Clement's decision to portray Worldbeat party stars African band thiala AFRICAN MUSIC lovers take note: Vancover’s premier African dance band, thiala, will take part ina worldbeat dance party on Sunday, May 22, at the Starfish Room. The band, with members from around the world, will play a PROGRESSIVE PANTS One Pair 25% Two Pair 40%" E Three or More 50% § KEITHMOOR OR RIVIERA? Pure Wool and Wool Blenids 4 WINDBREAKERS B. Cattons, Silk or Linen 3 O%F SPORTCOATS Linen, Seersucker, Of off Silk Blends 3 O% Saves Expos May 23 The unique blend of modern African rhythms in traditional song and dance compositions. Djeni of CITR 102 FM, will play Afrabeat, reggae, soudous, hiphop and zouk. In addition, there will be videos from -London, Paris, New York and Montreal. MENSROOM 1403 Bellevue Ave. West Van 925-1812 Creat aces * Photo Laine Harder THE STRUGGLE to communicate between white and biack. Jennifer Clement and Alvin Sanders are featured in the Vancouver Playhouse production of The Struggle of the Dogs and the Black. the fey, romantic-bul-naive Leona as “Shirley MacLaine on speed” makes naturalistic sense, but ii eliminates any feminine mystery. Lines like “It’s not because you work that you're tich” end up being reduced from truth to banality. Sanders is implacably patient as Alboury, but ultimately offers no sense of potential power. This is not a man descended from kings: : The set calls for brick bunga- lows in the camp. Instead we get a small trailer. While this may say something about impermanence, it totally diminishes Horn’s status in the play. The beauty that is Africa is a large clump of bougainvillaea, claimed by Leona. Instead we get a threadbare (thorn?) shrub. At the beginning of the play Alboury appears from behind a tree to demand the body. Instead Sanders walks on stage from the wings. A few surreal leaves sus- pended above the set do not cover the transition. If it is not possible to represent all the set requirements with the same naturalism that is employed’ i Join us for our Master Gardener Clinic. With experts on hand from Van | Dusen Gardens. Saturday & Sunday | May 21 & 22nd, 10am - 4pm i ASSORTED VARIETIES OF reoncn? HANGING BASKET ISAFERS TROUNCE #Controls aphids & acaterpillars. 1 Itr., yready to use ‘w. an a 410 or more! with the trailer, would it not be- better to eliminate all “real” place? A ; A tighter focus, a smaller the- atre even, might serve Hamblin’s vision of this play, which seems to live in the naturalism of English and American theatre. . The wide Playhouse stage seemed to dissipate the occasion- al energy generated by Panych and Dow and make safe the dan- gers of racism. + In the darkness | heard the voice of Africa bemoaning its misfortune until the lights dis- pelled my imagination. ec Regular $1.99 each wee