Monologue play gets fresh perspective from second soliloquy

I have no idea whether Onyx Theatre's production of "Arthur and Esther" is going to be any good. It doesn't open until tonight (onyxtheatre.com) for a single-weekend run. But the script is something that jumps out at you on a first read. It demands to be brought to life.

I don't want to give away too much. It begins with a middle-age man from small-town USA who seems to have decided to commit a catastrophic act. The first section is a monologue - dramatic and unpredictable - in which we learn what's behind the intelligent librarian's mixed-up thoughts. His talk about how people don't read books anymore is really a painful realization that the world has passed him by. He's a self-preoccupied individual who has always had trouble making decisions. His action here is horrific, but at long last he takes a strong stand.

In the second act, we get a much different point of view by his ex-wife. It's a sad tale on some levels, and yet an emotional (though unsentimental) life-affirming one.

But I wouldn't recommend trying to get the playwright to explain his play. In a phone interview from his London residence, University of Nevada, Las Vegas Master of Fine Arts author Ross Howard seemed confused when I asked him simple questions such as "What is your play about?" and "Why did you write this play?"

"I don't trust playwrights who talk too eloquently about their work," the 34-year-old Lancashire, England, native finally admitted. Fair enough. Suffice it to say Howard talks eloquently on the page. His observations about the tiny moments in life give universality to a specific situation. You see yourself in his loony but sympathetic characters.

"The original piece (which has been performed at UNLV and the Vegas Fringe Festival) was just about the man," he says. "But as an experiment, I wanted to deal with the ex-wife. You know the old saying: Even a flat pancake has two sides."

I think the woman's thoughts complete the script. Even though I've twice before seen the one-person monologue, I can't imagine it now without the plot twist brought about by the second character.

You come to understand why these people were attracted to one another, why they broke up and why things turned out the way they have.

Howard won't be able to attend the Onyx production. But he's been in touch with Director Brandon Burk and has made revisions at Burk's request. He's aware that some playwrights are resistant to changes.

"I think that stuff is just stupid," he says. "When you write a play in your bedroom, you're guessing how things might work. You need feedback from others. I left the play to Brandon. He shared with me what didn't make sense to him, and I wanted to give him the freedom to do what he wanted."

Howard says he has great respect for American playwrights.

"Americans are good at populating a stage, at creating amazing characters. The British tend to engage the mind more than the emotion."

Howard's "Arthur and Esther" suggests the author's education in both traditions has enriched his work with a fine, rare balance of both worlds.

Anthony Del Valle can be reached at
vegastheaterchat@aol.com. You can write him c/o Las Vegas Review-Journal, P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125.