Blind Mouth Singing
Debbie Apsan
IDC-9125
Yesterday, as I was walking in Madisan Square Park, I saw the actor who played Rederico, the younger son, in the play performed by the Asian American Acting Company, “Blind Mouth Singing”. This performance, playing now at the Baruch Performing Arts Center, portrays a conflict in Rederico’s head, trying to choose between his odd family and his friend at the bottom of the well. In addition, he has the challenge of dealing with his troubled mother desperately trying to hold her family together after her husband has abandoned her. I was quite shocked when I saw “Roderico”, and did not run over and say hi, but that vision forced me to remember the play I saw not so long ago. And, the good news is, that it only brought back good memories, because so many of the aspects of the play were phenomenal.
The play started off with the actors standing in the corners of the stage reciting parts of their lines from the play, which allowed the audience to get a first glance of all the actors. The stage was very plainly decorated, with kitchen supplies on both sides, including, of course, the knives which Mother of late afternoon, the mother of the boys, insisted on sharpening all the time. This was very appropriate because it gave the audience a real understanding of the economic situation of the family: they were very poor, and struggled daily trying to make money by selling goods at the market. And in the middle of the stage, there was a block of wood filled about five inches high with water. This represented the well into which Roderico would speak to his friend, Lucero. It was filled about five inches high with water. Its position gave the audience the opportunity to see both people when they were talking into and out of the well. Actually, after reading the script of the play, I was quite curious to how the company would develop the well, and they really did a great job. Furthermore, the floor pattern of the stage was very interesting because it was covered with wood panels, except for three black spots, which represented windows, and were covered up later in the play to prepare for the hurricane.
The music was very delicately done. There wasn’t a tremendous amount, and when it was played, its purpose was explicit, and the audience anticipated something interesting was about to occur. For example, the first time I remember hearing the music was during a quiet scene, when all of a sudden, Gordi, the eldest son, came running in to a specific rhythmic banging sound, and decided to torment his brother. From then on, it was obvious that when that sound was heard again, Gordi was about to cause trouble.
Costumes to such a play were simple as I expected. The actors didn’t change outfits throughout the play because it wouldn’t make sense. The family was so poor and definitely couldn’t afford more clothes.
Although this play had great props, music, and set, the play’s strength really lied in it’s actors. Wow, besides using teamwork to put the whole play together smoothly, each actor was very significant and really suited the part it played. First, mother of the late afternoon was exactly as I had imagined her. She was a strict woman who didn’t really show much affection for her children, and I assumed that was an exaggeration of how she was in real life. But after the play when I spoke to her, she was extremely sweet, and it was just that she acted well. Gordi, was very entertaining to watch, because he played the mean older brother role very well. He always came up with stupid excuses to get his brother into trouble, which his mother, of course, always believed. Its funny, but his build also added to his character because he was a little chubby, and his hair was always unkempt, so he just always looked messy and annoying. Rederico, was great and played the weak younger brother. He has a small, and slender build, and looked like he couldn’t stand up for himself, or say “no” to anyone. Lucero, the boy in the well, was great. He was the “transformed Rederico” who stood up for himself, and had self-confidence. Therefore, it was very appropriate that he was the best looking actor in the play, because his role was to be the charismatic, and confident son. Bolivia, the aunt, was the only character that didn’t fit my imagination. I thought she was going to be a bigger woman than her sister, mother of the late afternoon, because she seemed to control her every move. But she was exactly the opposite. She was small and petite, and practically gave in to her sister. This proved to work very well in the play.
There is no excuse not to see the play. It has an entertaining plot, great actors, and is truly thought provoking performance. Also, I recommend that all those younger siblings come along, because they should see how it is to stand up to the “big, bad, older sibling”.