By Kathryn Olsen
Exclusively on Youtube, the OUTwright Theatre Festival’s BlaQ OUT series is performing the world premiere of Roger Q. Mason’s socially motivated The White Dress in collaboration with the Fuse Theatre Ensemble. This Portland-based company has been in existence for over a decade and has brought thought-provoking works to venues as near as Seattle and as far as France and Mason’s newest work is a play that certainly calls the audience to examine their assumptions. Director Zeloselos Marchandt comments in the notes that “The element of change is what speaks most to the trans and queer experience, not necessarily pain. There is a loving relationship with change.” I have made it a point to attend a work by a queer voice during Pride month for several years and always look forward to the greater understanding that the productions provide.
The play opens with Jonathan (Nathaniel Owens), an eight-year-old child who finds himself drawn to pearl earrings belonging to his mother, Hazel (Kat Templeton). While his mother reacts more strongly to his deception over having taken one of the earrings, his father Theo (James R. Dixon) encourages him to consider what other things he is drawn to and how he sees himself. At school, Jonathan befriends Winnie (Janelle Rae), who questions his motives for not playing with the boys. The play explores the typical adolescent struggles of establishing one’s sense of self while also viewing it through the lens of discovering the difference between identity and labels as the two friends, Jonathan’s parents, and a revolving cast of characters played by “Everyman” (Samuel Dinkowitz) grow beyond early assumptions to find their core truths.
Owens’ performance is so natural to the character that it is difficult to imagine that the role is not simply a depiction of Owens. They present Jonathan with a vulnerability that is both hopeful and desperate at times. Jonathan’s choices and external forces that compel the action of the play require Owens to play a different version of the character based on the biases of a companion character and it renders their most intimate moments frank and lovely.
Dixon’s depiction of Theo is likewise riveting. This is a character who lives with repression of self and while it is empowering to see him encourage his son in Jonathan’s self-exploration with an almost vicarious pleasure, It is moving to consider the ways in which leaving behind an inauthentic lifestyle does not free him. Dixon is the Producing Artistic Director for this year’s festival and his aim of drawing audiences “closer to the stories telling the beauty of the human condition” is apparent in his portrayal of the first character to don the titular dress.
Templeton’s Hazel might seem to be an unsympathetic character at first, but she evolves with each appearance in the script. The audience can see that she is wearing blinders from the start while she struggles to reconcile experience with remorse. Templeton’s best work is found in her character’s pain and while her attitudes sometimes range from indifference to antagonism, there is power in the emotional journey.
After Jonathan, Winnie is easily has the most compelling character arc. The child Winnie openly questions gender roles but grows into the one person who truly understands Jonathan’s journey. Both Winnie and the artist who plays them are non-binary and this experience enriches the authenticity of the portrayal.
DInkowitz covers the most ground as Everyman. Whether a friendly hospital nurse, ignorant redneck, loving partner, or a predator on a park bench, he is unrecognizable in each aspect. As each actor is in a different frame, it is sometimes easy to lose track of who Dinkowitz is representing at the moment and his versatility gives the impression that a different actor has been called onto the stage every few scenes.
Treasure Lunan contributes frequently as the voice of the Stage Directions. While each character takes turns with the narrative voice, Lunan is the one who gives the most factual representation of the events. They are to be commended for the unflinching and unbiased performance.
Lunan also contribute as stage manager for the unusual format. Each actor is in a different venue, as this is a reading on Zoom. Under the direction of Marchandt, Production Manager and the composer of the additional music Rusty Tennant and Editor Kate Faye Cummings take this collaboration and transform it into a seamless work. The Graphics by Alec Lugo are well-designed and visually appealing.
Audiences should be aware that this work contains mature subject material such as coarse language, hate speech, descriptions of physical intimacy, and mentions of predatory behaviors as well as survival sex work. Those who attend would be wise to discuss these matters after the play.
The White Dress is an emotionally-stimulating contribution to the theatrical repertoire and well worth the emotional journey that it inspires in viewers. It is also part of a rich festival experience through the Fuse Theatre Ensemble Youtube channel. Come as soon as you can to witness its bold truths.
Fuse Theatre Ensemble Presents The White Dress; by Roger Q. Mason
Now playing at The White Dress
Tickets: Free
www.fusetheatreensemble.com
Fuse Theatre Ensemble Facebook Page
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