GLORIA: In All Its Glory
A Theater Review by Julinda D. Lewis
By: Virginia Rep/Cadence Theatre Company
At: Theatre Gym, Virginia Repertory Center, 114 W. Broad St., RVA 23220
Performances: May 11 – June 2, 2019
Ticket Prices: Single tickets start at $35
Info: (804) 282-2620 or va-rep.org
Gloria is an intriguing play by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, who also wrote Appropriate, which Cadence Theatre produced in 2018 and An Octoroon, which opens at TheatreLAB the basement on May 16. Not only does Jacobs-Jenkins appear to be a prolific playwright, but several of his works have won awards and other have been recognized by being nominated.* Of the two works I have seen so far, Appropriate and now Gloria, it is clear why Richmond theaters and directors want to share his work with our local theater audiences. His work is relevant and thought provoking, often addresses sensitive issues such as racism, suicide, mass shootings in the workplace, and family and social dysfunction with a clear eye and familiar settings that augment the surprise of the deliberately shocking actions or revelations of his otherwise ordinary characters.
In order not to spoil the surprises of Gloria, it may be necessary to talk around some issues and scenes, rather than to address them directly. With little knowledge of Gloria prior to attending the opening on Saturday night, I was totally unprepared for the culminating actions in the first act. Suffice it to say this play does come with a warning: “Please be advised that Gloria contains sudden, loud sound effects and realistic depictions of violence that may not be suitable for all audience members. For more information, we encourage patrons to contact the box office at 804-282-2620.”
Set in the offices of a prestigious but fictitious Arthur Kimble Publishing company in Manhattan, the first act of Gloria draws us into the stressful workday lives of a group of young editorial assistants who are all striving to succeed in the cutthroat world of writing and editing. Friendships aren’t really about social interaction as much as they are about networking and keeping the enemy in plain sight. Even interns are regarded as potential threats to one’s job security.
Cadence’s artistic director Anna Senechal Johnson directed a dynamic cast in this two hour production – including one intermission – with an intensity that made the viewer forget all about time. Laine Satterfield played the title role of Gloria with a wide-eyed and wild-eyed edginess that affected the energy and actions of all the other actors even when she wasn’t onstage. Satterfield also plays the role of Nan, a senior editor who is heard during the first act but not seen until the second act. Described by her employees as cold and distant, Satterfield focuses attention on the humanity of her character during the second act.
Anne Michelle Forbes as the hyper-active Kendra brought humor and style to the office and the stage and I was delighted to be introduced to Joel Ashur, who played the intern, Miles. One of several cast members who played multiple roles, Ashur indicated after the show that Miles was his personal favorite. Other roles include a very attentive barista and a vapid film producer.
The cast also included Jessie Jennison as a young office assistant named Ani, Matt Polson as a senior office associate named Dean, and Happy Mahaney as the disenchanted Lorin, a fact checker who works in an office down the hall from the cubicled quartet. While the play is called Gloria the character of Gloria touches the thoughts and actions of all the other characters from the beginning of the first act to the closing scene of the second act – which occurs some two years later.
A major theme of the play is how people perceive and process trauma and grief. Kendra, Dean, Nan, and Lorin all have different memories and perspectives of the trauma that ties them together. This seems to be a strength of author Jacob-Jenkins – presenting the good, the bad, and the ugly of his characters, making them three-dimensional and real to the viewer. Their responses to loss and their differing personal experiences with the same trauma make one question who owns loss? Who owns trauma? Who, if anyone, has the right to profit from it? To this end, Johnson has included detailed program notes, including a full paragraph about the setting, an organizational hierarchy of the fictitious publishing company (identifying staff members as Baby Boomers, Generation X, Generation Y, and Generation Z), and discussion questions to guide viewers through this experience.
Music plays a prominent role in this play – which is not a musical. There is original music by Nicholas Caviness and Ali Thibodeau, with Thibodeau credited with the unseen role of singer Sarah Tweed. There is also some very amusing singing by Forbes and Jennison in a major scene in which they mourn the death of the singer. The Sarah Tweed of Gloria is fictitious, but I did find a real singer named Sarah Tweed in an online search after the show.
Rich Mason is the scenic designer for Gloria. The set features clean lines and multi-use wooden tables and translucent panels that reflect the natural lighting effects created by Weston Corey and Michael Jarett and changes from a New York publishing office to a familiar facsimile of a Starbucks coffee shop to the offices of a television and film production company in Los Angeles.
Having presented the audience with multiple perspectives, neither the author nor the director wraps up with a tidy ending or even explanations for the questions that are raised, explored, but never answered. Of course, people lingered in the lobby after opening night, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this occurs every night. Gloria could very well have been offered as an entry into the Acts of Faith festival. This is not theater for those who want to be entertained, but for those who desire to be challenged.
*Playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins has won numerous awards, including the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize for Drama, the PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation Award, the Benjamin H. Danks Award, the Steinberg Playwrights Award, the Sundance Theatre Institute’s Tennessee Williams Award, the Helen Merrill Award, the Paula Vogel Award, and the Princess Grace Award. Gloria was a Pulitzer Prize finalist and received two Lucille Lortel Award nominations as well as a 2016 Drama League Award for Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Play and two 2016 Outer Critics Circle Awards.
Julinda D. Lewis is a dancer, teacher, and writer who was born in Brooklyn, NY and now lives in Eastern Henrico County.
———-
Photo Credits: Jason Collins Photography
RVArt Review 
One thought on “GLORIA: In Trouble or In Excelsis Deo”