In The Baltimore Waltz, whimsy, sadness are out of step

Paula Vogel’s “The Baltimore Waltz” gets a nicely acted production at Rep Stage, but one that makes you yearn for more depth of feeling.

It is a funny and whimsical play but steeped in sadness. A 1992 Obie Award winner for best new American play, “The Baltimore Waltz” preceded by six years Vogel’s “How I Learned to Drive,” which won the Pulitzer Prize for drama. It has some of the same elements — a likable narrator/protagonist and a family story full of humor and pain.

In “The Baltimore Waltz,” Vogel turns sad memories into an antic and metaphorical trip to Europe. She lost her brother Carl to HIV/AIDS in 1988. In a program note, she recalls that two years before his death, he had invited her to travel abroad with him. Citing money issues and work, she declined, not aware he was ill.

In her play, Vogel’s stage persona, Anna (Michelle Eugene), and brother Carl (Ben Cunis) get to go on their European tour, although the program says the setting is “a hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.” Indeed, the centerpiece of the sparse set is a hospital bed, and Carl wears pajamas throughout.

In Vogel’s fantasy, Anna is the one who’s ill — with Acquired Toilet Disease, or ATD — “an affliction of single school teachers.” Carl takes her to Europe for a last fling and to consult a Viennese quack (Sasha Olinick). Overcome by a what-happens-in-Europe-stays-in-Europe lust, Anna dives into that hospital bed with waiters and bellhops (also Olinick) while Carl hits the museums.

Vogel’s script is rich in film references and symbolism. The 1949 thriller “The Third Man” figures prominently, as does Carl’s childhood toy, a floppy-eared rabbit, which he inexplicably takes to Europe. It seems to embody his secret life.

Advertisement

Any script so rich in metaphor requires an approach that illuminates what's between the lines. Whimsy and archness serve the script, for sure, but veins of richer emotions are there to be mined as well.

Under the guidance of Suzanne Beal, Rep Stage’s co-producing artistic director, the show boasts sensitive work by Eugene, Cunis and the puckish Olinick. Yet the actors seem to have been coaxed into an over-arch delivery that too often mutes the play’s deeper tones.

“The Baltimore Waltz” ought to simultaneously make you laugh and break your heart. At Rep Stage, the balance is just a little off.

Horwitz is a freelance writer.

The Baltimore Waltz, by Paula Vogel. Directed by Suzanne Beal. Scenic design, Collin Ranney; lighting, Marianne Meadows; sound, William K. D'Eugenio; costumes, Jessica Welch. About 90 minutes, no intermission. Through Sept. 13 at Rep Stage, professional theater in residence at Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center, Howard Community College, 10901 Little Patuxent Pky., Columbia, Md. $15-$40. Call 443-518-1500 or go to www.repstage.org.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7uK3SoaCnn6Sku7G70q1lnKedZLKvwMSrq5qhnqKyr8COrZ%2BemaSav6CwwKeanmeZo3q1tMRmmZqkpJ66sL7EZq6apKSveri0yKaqsmWjlrGvsdKsZJqqlWK8tsCMqJ1mq6SavXB%2Bj2psaGhpZH1ye8WaaWpsZ2V9boGPm51maWGagm6Fl2ppZnFimYJ6gJeaa2meaJTAtbvRsmWhrJ2h