Gender Bending Takes You to 'Cloud Nine'

Abraham Adams shows the world his undies and his acting skills as Cathie in 'Cloud Nine.'

h, the joys of gender reversal.

A man kissing a woman on stage is always better when you know it’s actually a man kissing a man in a wig. Chalk it up to general immaturity, but there it is.

It’s a fact Caryl Churchill was well aware of—and made use of—when she wrote her gender-bending, sometimes comical, sometimes not “Cloud Nine,” which opened last night at the Babcock Theatre.

At least in the first act. That half is set in colonial Africa. The play uses its setting to aid in its farcical version of rigid Victorian stereotypes. Clive (Abraham M. Adams, at least in this act) is a British soldier who has brought his wife Betty (Troy Deutsch), two children, governess and mother-in-law to live with him. They are joined by the fiercely independent Mrs. Saunders (Cassandra Stokes-Wylie), the slimy native servant Joshua (Ryan Shaver) and explorer Harry (JC Ernst).

Despite their relative freedom on the broad plains of Africa, the characters are still trapped by the unforgiving ideals of their era. (And the natives who are continuously on the verge of revolt.) Betty is in love with Harry, but unable to escape her oppressive husband, who is having an affair with Mrs. Saunders. Tragically, Harry favors his own sex, as does her son, much to the Clive’s chagrin and Joshua’s joy.

It all sounds much more confusing than it is. After they’re played for initial laughs, cross-dressing characters feel perfectly natural, a testament to the actors’ (especially Adams’s) ability to imitate the opposite sex. Every funny moment is taken for all it’s worth, from the sound guy with the coconuts to the joys of watching them all coo over the doll-playing youngest child. Even the parts that are sad or disturbing are still funny.

And that’s OK, because they’re just setting you up for Act Two, where nothing is very funny. The transition between the two parts is as seamless as the transition between genders, but the difference between them is palpable. Victorian characters literally haunt their modern-day counterparts. Even the onstage sex that was so funny before becomes sort of pathetic and lonely. Comic relief only comes in the form of Cathy (Abraham Adams), a demon five-year old with a tricycle. Cathy’s mom, Lin (Amber Hansen) is in love with tortured intellectual Victoria (Cassandra Stokes-Wylie). Victoria returns affection but is still tied to her pompous husband, Martin (JC Ernst). Meanwhile, Victoria’s mother (Sarah E. Budge) has just left her husband and her brother Edward’s (Troy Deutsch) lover, Gerry (Ryan Shaver), has just left him.

It’s a study in love and sexual realization, and the loneliness that accompanies independence. Lin, Ellen and Victoria find comfort in each other while Victoria’s mother discovers the pleasures of living alone. A montage of photos prefaces each act, and the second is a series of photos of Queen Elizabeth to the tune of the Sex Pistols’ “God Save the Queen.” At one point Martin gives a long lecture to Victoria, scolding her to be more liberated. Both are fitting statements to the sexually and socially schizophrenic era in which they (and, basically, we) live.

“Cloud Nine” plays Oct. 8 through 12 and 16 through 19. Shows are at 7:30, except on Sundays, at 7 p.m, and Saturday matinees at 2 p.m. Call 581-7100 if you have any questions.
bobbi@red-mag.com