by Jess Hoffman
So far this year I have reviewed plays about such heavy topics as drug addiction, incest, revolution, and pedophilia. And yet none of those shows left me quite as disturbed as Schenectady Civic Player’s production of The Goat (or Who is Sylvia). This show put me in the kind of reflective stupor that had me driving home from the theater in silence, reliving and ruminating on what I had just experienced.
The Goat concerns a renowned architect and typical family man who has fallen in love with a goat. This is certainly an unnerving premise, but I wouldn’t say that bestiality is a more upsetting topic than drug addiction or pedophilia. What makes The Goat so profoundly distressing is its delivery. Throughout the play, we are forced to reckon with so many of our own ideas about the world and about relationships, the limits of our ability to empathize and understand, and the destructive potential of human emotions when pushed to extremes.
The play takes place in the living room of the two main characters: Martin and Stevie. The set brings us into a picturesque home: white walls, yellow and brown furniture, and decor in clean white, yellow, and brown. The only set piece that doesn’t match this color scheme is a vase of particularly yonic flowers that Stevie brings in at the beginning of the play. The immaculateness of the set just makes it all the more tragically satisfying when Stevie begins smashing decorations and toppling furniture in the course of her argument with Martin. (Indeed, I do not envy stage manager Regina Baker’s herculean task of cleaning the trashed set after each performance.)
Edward Albee’s witty and sardonic dialogue is simultaneously intuitive and off-putting. It seems that not all the actors in this play were comfortable with Albee’s linguistic peculiarities, but luckily leading actress Jennifer Van Iderstyne is able to fully embrace the play’s dialogue as written. Aiden White, playing Martin and Stevie’s son Billy, seems to struggle with the dialogue at times, but he still does an excellent job of playing the protagonists’ sarcastic young son caught in the midst of a family crisis that he cannot fully grasp. Michael Shaefer’s portrayal of Martin, the man in love with the titular goat, is stoic to the point of absurdity until the last scene, when his emotion finally begins to burst forth. The character as written calls for dry detachment up to a point, but I wish there had been some moments to see Martin’s emotion bubbling over before the ending of the play. Without any such moments, Martin’s anger and then despair in the last scene simply aren’t believable. On the other hand, Van Iderstyne absolutely shines as Stevie with a range of conflicting and overlapping emotions that rise and fall in perfect pace with the action and dialogue of the play. All in all, Van Iderstyne’s portrayal of Stevie is a joy to watch.
In her director’s note for this show, Melissa Putterman Hoffman praises The Goat’s ability to “make us think about love and loss and who we really are, and to examine the limits of our tolerance.” On this front, her show succeeds in every way. She also notes this play’s ability to “make us truly laugh with situations that make us squirm,” but on this front, I cannot say that Schenectady Civic’s production does Albee’s play justice. I can certainly think of moments in the script that have the potential to be funny, but this production was far too bogged down with painful emotions and heart-wrenching conflicts to be funny. This seems like a missed opportunity, especially since the director saw the play’s potential for funny moments and seemed to understand how much more poignant moments of comedy could have made the play’s more uncomfortable themes. Nevertheless, I recommend this play to people who are ready for a dark and deeply emotional play that will leave them reflecting on the experience long after the actor’s take their bow.
Schenectady Civic Players presents The Goat (or Who is Sylvia?) by Edward Albee, directed by Melissa Putterman Hoffman, runs from July 21-30, 2023, at the Schenectady Civic Playhouse, 12 South Church Street in Schenectady, NY. Stage Manager: Regina Baker. Board operator: Elise Charlebois. Producers: Beth Ruman and John Sutton. Dramaturg: Sandra Boynton. Cast: Jennifer Van Iderstyne as Stevie, Michael Schaefer as Martin, Jeff Laurie as Ross, and Aiden White as Billy. Set design and construction by John Sutton and Doug Peek. Costume design by Beth Ruman. Lighting design by Elise Charlebois. Sound design by Jennifer Van Iderstyne. Properties by Melissa Peterson. Intimacy Coordinator: Sammy Wilson. Rehearsal Prompter: Jean Carney. Stage Manager Consultant: Amanda Lupe.
Performance dates are Friday–Sunday (July 21-23) and Wednesday–Sunday (July 26-30). Friday and Saturday curtains are at 8 pm, Wednesday and Thursday curtains are at 7:30 pm, and Sundays are matinees only at 2:30 pm. All tickets are $25. Runs approximately 2 hours with one intermission. Contains discussions of sexuality and bestiality. Recommended for ages 16+. Tickets are available online, by phone, or at the door for any performance. Call 518-382-2081 or visit civicplayers.org for more information.