It’s November 13th, 2024 in the Davidson Barber Theater. The black box is set for opening night of Mauritius by Theresa Rebeck. Around the room the lights are dim and warm, almost as if I have discovered a secret speakeasy. I took my seat, which faced directly towards the stage in a proscenium style. Yet, I didn’t feel separated as an audience member, the light wood paneling of the stage floor closed the distance, welcoming me into the set. I took notice of the set itself and saw that it was split into an office space and lounge. The overall ambience of the space was gentle yet eerie. The feeling of a speakeasy started to fade as I sat in the space longer, and now it almost felt like a detective’s office, as if the whole room was on edge. Finally at the back of the set, the main stars of the show, a collection of stamps hanging down almost as a mosaic. Each stamp was uniquely intricate and as an audience member it was a nice visual representation to understand the value for collectors.
Mauritius is a play, its plot focuses on the fight over the one penny and two penny post office Mauritius. It is explained that these stamps were issued in Mauritius and are detailed with Queen Victoria’s head from 1847, due to a misprint saying “post office” instead of “postpaid” the stamps became very valuable and sought after by collectors. Each character has different motivations over the stamps and the battle over them left me surprised and satisfied. The play is composed of five actors that move equipment on and around the stage without the help of backstage crew. So, there are plenty of transitional scenes where a semi-blackout occurs signifying a transition period. These transitions were achieved with cardboard boxes, when the boxes are on the stage it signifies the home of sisters Mary and Jackie and when the boxes are off, the audience is transported into a stamp appraisal office. The use of actors to achieve these movements on stage was effective because it was clean and quick, but it also maintained the intimacy of the set. Not having too many people back and forth kept the feeling of there being a secret that no one else, but those few actors and audience members could know about.
Since the cast was so small the set also remained contained, but there was still plenty of room to play with the characters’ power dynamics. Blocking is the best way to portray subliminal messages unlike in movies where they are able to cut frames to frame in order to signal messages. Mauritius did very well with its use of blocking, for example there was constant conflict between Sterling (the man with the money to buy the stamps), Dennis(the man with the plan to steal the stamps) and Phillip(has knowledge in order to evaluate the authenticity of the stamps.) All three characters were in a constant struggle for power and control, which could be seen in the way they stood in proximity to each other. There were distinct times where they would be in the shape of a “V.” Dennis was usually in the middle of Phillip and Sterling representing their aversion to being near each other. Sterling also had choreographed movement that made him circle the characters, menacingly walking around them as a demonstration of dominance. As an audience member this keyed me in on how Sterling must be used to being in control and getting his way through intimidation. These movements and use of set pieces can convey messages there aren’t proper words to describe.
As an actor, I am always grappling with the justification of my characters actions and movements. Each character through this fight for the stamps kept a somewhat even kilter, no one started barreling into anger or fist fights until the second act towards the climax of the show. This choice at first was off putting because the scenery of the set is already so minimalistic that the lack of emotion from the characters, set a slow tone for the show. As the show continued, I started to see the director and writers intent on having the actors play this way because they slowly became undone, showing a descent into madness. Mary and Jackie are perfect examples of this because they both have a persona they are trying to display. Mary and Jackie are half sisters who have a strained relationship. Mary is portrayed as sophisticated and upper class, whereas her sister Jackie is frazzled and thrown together, struggling to make ends meet. Jackie and Mary both want these stamps and feel entitled to them for separate reasons, but their bodies told more about their characters than their words and furthered the story considerably. Mary walks with her body tight and leads with her nose when she moves, putting on an heir of confidence and superiority. While Jackie is looser and sporadic in her movement, constantly pacing and worried. This made for an interesting contrast when these characters were alone together. Jackie moves around the set ambiguously while Mary moves in lines and angles, it’s almost as if there movements are an underlying argument within itself.
As this was my first time seeing Maritus in person, I was thoroughly impressed and I felt that I left the experience with so much more than having just seen a show, but an understanding of the stamp collecting culture. The staging and acting all came together to deliver a somber, yet relatable presentation.