Today I saw a production of Heroes of the Fourth Turning, written by Will Arbery and presented by Catharsis Theater Collective at The Broadwater Black Box. The play follows a group of right-wing college students as their conservative beliefs and personal relationships evolve during a short gathering. The title is actually pretty funny when you think about it.
Let me just say: I was blown away by how brave it is to put on a production like this. The play shows us a side of America that we don’t often see, particularly in Los Angeles theater. There is a lot of political and ideological content here, but what makes the play fascinating is how those ideas gradually begin to fall apart under the weight of the characters’ emotions and personal conflicts. You have to look at the forest, not just the trees.
In Los Angeles theater, I have almost never seen conservatives portrayed as fully human characters, or conservative politics discussed in such a direct and unfiltered way. This production gives us a glimpse into the conservative intellectual world and, more importantly, shows how those beliefs can become complicated when confronted with their different histories of the characters
I am not conservative in any way, but I genuinely felt like I was given a glimpse into a world I normally would not have access to. There were moments when I wanted to stand up and argue with the characters, but the direction of the show never really allowed me to do that. Instead, it felt like I was looking through the glass of an aquarium, observing these people and trying to understand them rather than simply judging them. That distance made the experience much more interesting.
At first, I was surprised to see an entirely white cast, but as the play progressed, I understood why that choice was important to the world being portrayed. The performances were consistently strong and grounded in realism. Ryan Lisman does an especially good job bringing comedy into an otherwise very serious play without overplaying the drunkenness of his character. Dakota Bailey powers through bringing passion as a conservative character. Mackenna Shults brings humanness to playing a character with a disability. Jordan Morgan balances between bringing an understanding to the other characters while battling his own internal demons. Dawn Alden brings calmness to the chaos, eloquently balancing out the distance between the audience and arguments onstage.
The set, centered around a porch, was simple but well-designed and helped create an intimate environment for the characters to interact. I did think some of the actors occasionally had trouble finding their light, which made a few moments visually distracting. The show was very well-staged, as the actors expertly used body language to highlight the relationships in a play that could very easily get caught up in ideas. There is a lot to unpack here, and at times I felt like I was trying to keep up with the conversation rather than fully experiencing it.Whether you agree with these characters or not, the play asks you to sit with them, listen to them, and try to understand what drives them.
I recommend this show! Now playing at The Broadwater Black Box through August 30. Tickets can be found on events.humanitix.com/heroesofthefourthturning
Stage Takes 