The many moods of Dana Schultes as intense, pushy parent and school executive committee member Suzanne in Stage West’s production of the send up of political correctness “Eureka Day.”
Photos by Evan Michael Woods/Staff illustration
Eureka Day’s executive committee, made up of parents at the willfully progressive private school, makes all decisions by consensus. This becomes a problem after an outbreak of mumps sharply divides said committee.
In an incisive production at Stage West Theatre, directed by Jenna Burnett and seen at last Sunday’s matinee, Jonathan Spector’s Tony-winning play abruptly shifts from a wry, uproarious satire playfully bursting the balloon of lefty-liberal socio-political views into a drama that uncovers differences festering beneath the patina of extreme tolerance.
The tone shift works because of precise, convincing acting from the cast and Spector’s ability to carve out a narrative that’s clear and nuanced. Besides the question of whether to mandate vaccinations, with potential consequences that are financial as well as philosophical, “Eureka Day” deals with lingering racism and open marriage among the woke set.
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By broadening the picture of who these people are and what they want, the playwright creates a case that uncompromising stances are inherently contradictory, or at least ripe for reconsideration, especially when fueled by feelings and assumptions rather than facts or logic.
Seen recently at Amphibian Stage as Roy Scheider in “The Shark is Broken,” a comedy set behind the scenes during the filming of “Jaws,” Jakie Cabe plays Don, the genial if high-strung head of the school (principal would be too formal). Rarely do you see an actor who’s so comfortable onstage.
Amid designer Clare Floyd DeVries’ colorful, detailed set of a classroom flanked by doors to the library and administrative office, Don opens the first committee meeting of the year with a discussion about whether to add a new category — “transracial adoptee” — to the already comically long dropdown menu of ethnic/racial designations on the school application.
Adding flavor to the atmosphere are bean bag chairs, signs that say things like “A is for Activist” and “G is for Grassroots” and a mural of a unicorn at the end of a rainbow.
Introducing the newest and only Black committee member, cool but focused Carina (Joy Yvonne Jones), Don cites her “unique perspective” even as he and the intense, pushy Suzanne (Stage West executive producer Dana Schultes) repeatedly cut her off when she tries to add it. Later, they assume she’s not a “full pay family.”
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The other two parents on the board are the sensitive Eli (Philip Matthew Maxwell), who comes off a bit wounded, and the seemingly hardened Meiko (Breana Deanda), who spends most of the play silently knitting as the others talk about “holding space for everyone.” Eli and Meiko are having an affair — with his wife’s permission.
This first scene is a brilliant setup as the talk plunges down a rabbit hole of comical political correctness-speak. Don, as is his wont, opens the proceedings with a telling quote from 13th-century Persian mystic Rumi, and committee members share scones made by a former theoretical physicist.
“Eureka Day,” which takes place in the liberal bastion of Berkeley, Calif., reaches its high point of hilarity when Don organizes an online “community activated conversation” that quickly goes awry. He calls it after an unvaccinated student contracts mumps and the health department mandates that kids without immunity stay home until the end of a quarantine period.
Should the committee, in all fairness, completely close the school? Should it change the vaccination policy? In yet another send-up of contemporary culture, comments flashing across the screen skid off topic before turning ugly. Anyone who has participated in such a forum will recognize its maddening features. “Eureka Day” plays it for big laughs.
After intermission, cleverly called “recess,” the plot turns serious, pitting openness and inclusivity against life-or-death stakes. At issue is the question of individual choice versus what the prevailing science calls for. On top of that, a decision either way will cause some families to pull their children out of Eureka Day, threatening the school’s existence.
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The reversal in tone works perfectly, thanks to Spector’s intelligent script and the grounded performances. Make fun of these people all you want — as the playwright does early on.
Beneath the silly ways issues like the teaching of evolution, the veracity of climate change and the idea of herd immunity versus vaccination are sometimes framed (they all come up), the concerns of parents are real, no matter how wacky their stands may seem.
Through Nov. 8 at 821-823 W. Vickery Blvd., Fort Worth. $49.50-$59.50. stagewest.org.