Stage Left’s RABBIT Is A Stew Of Emotions

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There is a lot of anger going on in Stage Left’s Chicago premiere of British playwright Nina Raine’s Rabbit.   Stridently directed by Elly Green, this six person play certainly has some great moments during its overly long running time.   The plot is a shifting endeavor where we find our protagonist Bella (Kate Black-Spence) on the cusp of her 29th birthday.  A party with her friends ensues with a milieu of characters to stir the action including two of her ex-boyfriends who are at odds for Bella’s affection for very different reasons.   What most of the guests do not know is that Bella’s father (Sean Sinitski) is dying, thus Bella’s emotional rants must be viewed through a prism of regret and reconciliation.

In Rabbit, the ladies are clearly in charge and the men are merely pawns in their world.  That is a great change of pace to see in the theatre.  But as plot focused as the women are in this production, it is in fine performances of Nicholas Harazin (Tom) and Dennis William Grimes (Richard) that somehow center this play and keep it from becoming a mere BBC sit-com.

Once fully digested Rabbit has much to say about class-stucture, finding your true calling in life, reconciliation and redemption.   It just comes from characters that are very hard to connect to.

Rabbit runs through May 26, 2013 at Theatre Wit, 1229 W. Belmont, Chicago.  For more information visit www.TheatreWit.com and www.StageLeftTheatre.com.  For calendar information visit www.TheatreInChicago.com