Florida Weekly: Words become weapons in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”

Words become weapons in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”

At Gulfshore Playhouse, two couples engage in a brutal night of emotional crossfire — where truth, illusion, and cruelty collide with riveting precision

BY KRISTIN VOIT. Kristin.voit@floridaweekly.com

Originally Published in Florida Weekly: https://www.floridaweekly.com/articles/naples-ae/words-become-weapons-in-whos-afraid-of-virginia-woolf/

I never imagined it could be satisfying to watch people shred each other to pieces with words. Still, in the Gulfshore Playhouse’s production of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” malice takes on a delicious merriment in the capable hands of masterful actors.

“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” a Tony-Award Award-winning play written in 1961-62 by absurdist playwright Edward Albee, is, on the surface, an unflinching dissection of marriage — simultaneously realistic and allegorical. If it sounds intense, it most certainly is. Truth and illusion. The fallacy of “the American Dream.” The relevance of Albee’s work in today’s world is undeniable and uncomfortable, which makes for great theater. Audiences may be familiar with the 1966 movie version, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, which earned Taylor an Oscar.

Beth Hylton as Martha and Jeffrey Binder as George in the Gulfshore Playhouse production of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. -PHOTO CREDIT: MATTHEW SCHIPPER

Beth Hylton and Jeffrey Binder tackle the roles of Martha and George in the Gulfshore Playhouse’s production. Both actors bring extensive experience—Binder has a long resume of work on Broadway, television and film, and served as Associate Artistic Director of Gulfshore Playhouse for six seasons, while Hylton returns for her fifth production at Gulfshore Playhouse, boasting credits that range from regional theater to television and film.

Actors Sam Bell-Gurwitz and Becca Ballenger bring regional stage, television and movie experience to round out the cast as the young, married houseguests Nick and Honey.

The play, directed by Kristen Courey, CEO and Producing Artistic Director of Gulfshore Playhouse, is staged in the 125-seat Studio Theatre.

The seats are set on risers, allowing every audience member an intimate view of the set, which is itself a glorious cornucopia of period details—a stately beamed ceiling, the walls adorned with abstract Art Deco paintings juxtaposed between framed classic portraits and landscape, an old-fashioned radio and record player downstage right, a winding staircase upstage, a writing desk, couch, countless, obviously consumed books and the much-used bar situated stage left. I was struck by the intricate detail of the props and scenery and how perfectly they complemented the domestic disasters that unfolded onstage.

As the play begins, Martha and George enter, and Martha exclaims, “What a dump,” to scattered laughter from the audience. It only takes moments for their relationship dynamics to unfold. They are a middle-aged couple — he’s a weary, frustrated history professor, and she is the discontented daughter of the college president.

The cast of the Gulfshore Playhouse production of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. -PHOTO CREDIT: MATTHEW SCHIPPER

After returning home from a long faculty party, we learn that Martha has invited Nick and Honey to their home for drinks. The train wreck of an evening is propelled by massive consumption of alcohol and verbal vitriol. When Nick and Honey arrive, they attempt pleasantries that are quickly eclipsed by their hosts’ obvious resentments.

This play is challenging and not for the faint of heart. First, at nearly three and a half hours, broken into three acts with two intermissions, it mirrors the unrelenting dis-ease and entrapment of a floundering relationship. In the art of verbal warfare, we quickly discover that Martha and George are equally yoked and frighteningly adept. All the horsemen of relationship doom gallop freely as they hurl barbs at each other with practice and precision.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s wonderfully funny, too. This production offers audiences the opportunity to experience the craft of acting at its highest level. Hylton and Binder infuse Martha and George with nuance and skill — watching them banter, cajole, seethe, attack, manipulate and change tactics is a masterclass in theater excellence. At one point, Martha sums up the darkness of the comedy with the line, “It was funny, but it was awful.”

The dialogue is sophisticated and spurious — It spills out in rapid fire, and the actors deliver their lines without hesitation, demonstrating talent and skill that make the entire performance a thrill ride of unexpected twists and fluidity. For a play full of dark humor and cruelty, the actors seem to be having tremendous fun, which translates to a deep appreciation from the audience for their talents.

Becca Ballenger as Honey and Sam Bell-Gurwitz as Nick in the Gulfshore Playhouse production of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. -PHOTO CREDIT: MATTHEW SCHIPPER

As the naïve and hopeful young couple, Bell-Gurwitz and Ballenger are unwittingly caught in the web of Martha and George’s scrutiny. Ballenger’s Honey is delightfully sweet in her innocence as she walks unknowingly into the fray, unraveling and descending into hilarious drunkenness to escape her discomfort, and Bell-Gurwitz’s Nick, despite being woefully outmatched by George’s volleys, displays a ruthless confidence and ambition as he navigates the power struggle between George and Nick.

Despite the contempt, disdain, and cruelty of their words and devastating actions, there is an inexplicable yet palpable love between George and Martha. Somehow, their love is rooted in the pain and disappointment and each other’s abilities to goad each other into facing biting truths about their circumstances and their personal characters. It’s weird.

The play challenges us in the most uncomfortable of ways. I found myself aching for the characters, wishing they could find simpler paths to reconciliation, and simultaneously acknowledging that everyone is subject to the disappointments and discouragement that make up their animosity and resentment toward each other. It hurts to watch because it’s all too close to home—on very personal levels and on a grander scale. I genuinely believe that the purpose of theater goes beyond entertainment and, at its highest level, is designed to provoke, challenge, and ultimately prompt the audience to consider change.

I could dissect the literary significance and brilliance of Albee’s writing for hours (don’t worry, I won’t). In the hands of a capable, trained cast, the power of the themes and messages is inescapable — and equally entertaining.

Audiences may find themselves shrinking in their seats at times because it’s hard to watch people hurt each other, but this production is wholly worth the experience. The irony of the title —“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf —” inspired by combining the 1933 song from Disney’s “Three Little Pigs” with Virginia Woolf, an author renowned for her feminist social commentary — underscores a universal fear of facing brutal truths. Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf? Perhaps we all are, and that’s the magnificence of the play.

In The KNOW:

“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” by Edward Albee

Location: Gulfshore Playhouse, 100 Goodlette-Frank Road South, Naples
Dates: Oct. 23-Nov. 23
For tickets: gulfshoreplayhouse.org
Box Office: 239-261-7529