A prescient script from the 19th century matches outstanding performances by today's actors in Washington Stage Guild's current production, Mrs. Warren's Profession.
George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), sometimes ranked as the greatest British playwright after William Shakespeare, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925. He wrote more than 60 plays, including Mrs. Warren's Profession which he finished in 1893, and one he considered one of his "plays unpleasant" since it weighed in on a controversial topic.
(L-R) Lynn Steinmetz as Mrs. Kitty Warren and Rachel Felstein as Vivie Warren in Mrs. Warren’s Profession at Washington Stage Guild/Photo by DJ Corey Photography
George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), sometimes ranked as the greatest British playwright after William Shakespeare, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925. He wrote more than 60 plays, including Mrs. Warren's Profession which he finished in 1893, and one he considered one of his "plays unpleasant" since it weighed in on a controversial topic.
It's about a reformed prostitute and brothel-owner who tries to forge a new relationship with her estranged daughter, outraged by her mother's profession.
Shaw believed the brothel business was one forced by economic necessity, not by moral failings, and ends his play on an unsettling note of which I had hoped the opposite.
(L-R) R. Scott Williams as Reverend Samuel Gardner and Will Rothhaar as Frank Gardner in Mrs. Warren’s Profession at Washington Stage Guild/Photo by DJ Corey PhotographyShaw believed the brothel business was one forced by economic necessity, not by moral failings, and ends his play on an unsettling note of which I had hoped the opposite.
Director Michael Rothharr has some experience with this drama: He directed it for the Guild in 1991 when his son, Will, pranced around the stage at age four and now appears in the show as Frank Gardner in a sharp, confident manner.
"Frank" is a suitor, and a likely possibility to "clinch the deal," although somewhat manipulative and coy.
Lynn Steinmetz is Mrs. Warren, also from the 1991 production when she played Vivie (and not looking a day older).
From my mother's perspective, Mrs. Warren's frailties deserve compassion and patience, while her daughter, Vivie (Rachel Felstein), is a cold-blooded, self-righteous, and heartless woman who knows not how to forgive.
A mother's pleas go unheeded.
Both women present their characters in convincing fashion.
Superb acting by the remainder of the cast matches the riveting content including the wonderfully likable, clown Peter Boyer as Mr. Praed, another Vivie suitor and welcome contrast to the serious business at hand.
Carl Randolph is Sir George Croft, the entitled wealthy financier of Mrs. Warren's business, her "pimp" who sets his eyes on Vivie, too. Although a simple gesture when he lays his hand upon her shoulder, it was as if he had stripped her, exposing her vulnerabilities and sending shivers up my spine, for he took liberties with touch which was every man's right in Victorian England when it came to spouses. Women had no rights. And she was not his spouse.
R. Scott Williams is the Reverend Samuel Gardner, a bumbling, stumbling mysterious piece of Mrs. Warren's puzzle and also, the father of Frank Gardner.
Many questions are left unanswered for the pleasure of the audience to figure out.
Victorian costumes (by Sigríd Jóhannesdóttir), especially Mrs. Warren's colorful hats, are a delight and nicely complement the men in their dashing, upper-class attire.
Megan Holden designed an outdoor garden setting which easily transitions into law offices and more, all perfectly adequate for the show.
Shaw's play was years ahead of a more vigorous effort to win women's rights, a movement still underway in this, the month to recognize women's history.
In Britain Lord Chamberlain banned the play which did not reach the public stage until 1925, and when it came to New York in 1905, police arrested the cast and crew.
Other production crew members: Marianne Meadows, lighting; Marcus Darnley, sound; Arthur Nordlie, stage manager; Jenny Male, intimacy director; Laura Giannarelli, assistant stage manager; Bill Largess, artistic director and dramaturg; Steven Carpenter, associate artistic director.
What: Mrs. Warren's Profession by George Bernard Shaw
When: Thursday, 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 2:30 p.m. Through March 27, 2022,
Where: The Undercroft Theatre of Mt. Vernon Place United Methodist Church, 900 Massachusetts Ave., Washington, D.C. 20001
Tickets: Thursday and matinees, $50; Friday and Saturday nights, $60.
For more information, call the Box Office, 202-900-8788 and/or visit the WSG's website.
Metro stations: Walk from Mt. Vernon Square, Gallery Place, or Metro Center.
In Britain Lord Chamberlain banned the play which did not reach the public stage until 1925, and when it came to New York in 1905, police arrested the cast and crew.
Other production crew members: Marianne Meadows, lighting; Marcus Darnley, sound; Arthur Nordlie, stage manager; Jenny Male, intimacy director; Laura Giannarelli, assistant stage manager; Bill Largess, artistic director and dramaturg; Steven Carpenter, associate artistic director.
What: Mrs. Warren's Profession by George Bernard Shaw
When: Thursday, 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 2:30 p.m. Through March 27, 2022,
Where: The Undercroft Theatre of Mt. Vernon Place United Methodist Church, 900 Massachusetts Ave., Washington, D.C. 20001
Tickets: Thursday and matinees, $50; Friday and Saturday nights, $60.
For more information, call the Box Office, 202-900-8788 and/or visit the WSG's website.
Metro stations: Walk from Mt. Vernon Square, Gallery Place, or Metro Center.
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