The program for the VCDS’s 2016 God of Carnage has the following note from director Ben Murchison: “In order to further showcase this play’s [sic] thematic elements, I decided to convert the entire Cat’s Eye into the Novak’s loft.” Had I read this before entering the Cat’s Eye, I would have been saved from a rather awkward situation. As it was, despite noticing the telltale signs of breaking the fourth wall—such as a large banner with “Carnage Lane Lofts” on the ramp—upon noticing an old acquaintance, I immediately smiled, only to be greeted with a deadpan look and the hint of a glare. After I took a seat, I realized that she was, in fact, playing a character from the play; no wonder she looked like she’d been punched. Later, her “sibling” dragged a pair of audience members over to see “family pictures,” while the rest of the audience members perused a list of Novak family “house rules.” By the time Novak siblings (Katie Pereira and Katie Cohen) left the stage, the audience was already fully immersed in the Novak’s house.
God of Carnage, a “black comedy” by Yasmina Reza, takes place exclusively in a single room and has only four characters. The play opens with Alan (Ryan Falconer) and Annette Raleigh (Rachel Hart) sitting in the living room of Michael (Matthew Fonte) and Veronica Novak (Samantha Finkelstein), to discuss a playground fight between their sons, Benjamin Raleigh and Henry Novak. Aside from some passive-aggressive comments from Veronica, the meeting begins on a fairly civil note as the couples agree that Benjamin ought to apologize to Henry.
The civility begins to crumble, however, as the conversation about Benjamin and Henry leads to the surfacing of other interpersonal conflicts, and alliances are formed and reformed between the couples. At times, Alan and Annette are united against Michael and Veronica, couple against couple, as they attack each other’s parenting skills, career choices, and marital harmony. Other times, Veronica and Annette find themselves allied against their husbands, who claim that marriage and children have ruined their lives and applaud their sons’ playground violence. Perhaps most commonly, however, are three-way or even four-way conflicts: an allied pair looks on in amusement as another pair fights, or all four fight with each other. In short, the whole meeting degenerates into chaos, as a facade of civility gives way to a reality that bows before the “God of Carnage”—as Alan calls it—alone.
Although the script called for many repetitive actions, such as the Raleigh’s many attempts to make a dignified exit from the Novak’s living room, the actors’ nuanced performances alleviated any sense of monotony. Annette’s discomfiture was as believable as her later relaxed drunkenness, and Hart played her righteous frustration at her husband and her superficial anger over her purse with equal convincingness. Alan’s uptight persona contained elements of the aggressiveness he later displayed, and Falconer effectively set up his character’s later exasperation at the loss of his phone. Veronica’s integrity combined with her dishonesty remarkably, and Finkelstein’s decision to insert passive-aggressive inflections in the first half of the play made Veronica’s later carnal rage seem perfectly natural. Fonte, meanwhile, convincingly played Michael as a mild-mannered man at first, and later, as a thug with elements of kindness.
God of Carnage rung in the New Year for the VCDS on a high note. Director Ben Murchison made a splendid choice in choosing the small, intimate Cat’s Eye as the venue for God of Carnage. A play about the unavoidable messiness of life and, in particular, marriage,a successful production of God of Carnage depends on an audience that cannot turn away. Pulled immediately into the Novak’s lives and offered no breaks between scenes, the audience has no choice but to remain captivated until the play’s end. Honourable mention must be given here to the crew; Annette’s vomit was truly disgusting. Thanks for that.
