{"id":246497,"date":"2013-09-12T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2013-09-12T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/making-us-human\/"},"modified":"2013-09-12T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2013-09-12T07:00:00","slug":"making-us-human","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/making-us-human\/","title":{"rendered":"Making us human"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/strong><\/strong>ion starts 10th anniversary season with a contemporary gem<\/p>\n

Por Charlene Baldridge | Cr\u00edtico de Teatro SDUN<\/p>\n

Irish playwright Conor McPherson (b. Dublin, 1971) has written other plays seen in San Diego, specifically \u201cThe Weir\u201d at The Old Globe Theatre and \u201cThe Seafarer\u201d seen at San Diego Repertory Theatre. McPherson\u2019s latest play is \u201cThe Night Alive,\u201d seen very recently at London\u2019s Donmar Warehouse.<\/p>\n

To start off its 10th anniversary season, ion theatre could not have picked a better work than McPherson\u2019s 2008 \u201cShining City.\u201d And Glenn Paris could not have picked a better actor in the crucial role than his spouse and theater partner, Claudio Raygoza.<\/p>\n

\"(l<\/a>
(l to r) Jessica John and Francis Gercke (Courtesy ion theatre)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In \u201cThe Shining City,\u201d McPherson presents a small gathering of losers in modern day Dublin. The setting is a rundown building where Ian (played by Frances Gercke), a former priest and now a trained therapist, has hung his shingle. Even the doorbell doesn\u2019t work, a fact that lends the bleak comedy moments of humor.<\/p>\n

A despairing client named John (Raygoza) arrives. John\u2019s been seeing the ghost of his wife, who died in an accident for which John holds himself accountable.<\/p>\n

Apparently Ian\u2019s departure from the priesthood was caused by his attraction to Neasa (Jessica John), a rather slatternly parishioner who became the mother of his child. Also apparently, the troubled Ian has run away from them both, telling Neasa, \u201cIt\u2019s not about the baby. I just can\u2019t continue with you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Totally at sea without Ian, Neasa pleads, \u201cCan\u2019t you see what this is doing to me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Impressive newcomer Zach Bonin portrays Laurence, brought to Ian\u2019s office in the hope that the young man might help the struggling therapist to discover who he is in a world without God and without ghosts. Bonin plays the stranger so understatedly that we know exactly who he is: a good man caught in rough times, and aren\u2019t they all?<\/p>\n

McPherson\u2019s characters are bereft, blaming themselves for their own inability to find what they lack, whether some one or some thing, to make themselves whole. All have treated others \u2013 important others \u2013 so shabbily.<\/p>\n

Raygoza said he did not pick \u201cShining City\u201d as a vehicle for himself. Nonetheless, the role of John proves an incandescent, vulnerable, fathoms-deep portrayal that will not be forgotten. You are urged to see this production not just for that, however.<\/p>\n

Each role is played impeccably. And director Paris puts his finger on the pulse of what makes us human and what makes McPherson such an important playwright.<\/p>\n

Design elements \u2013 the work of sound designer James Dirks, visiting artist Neville Engelbrecht, lighting designer Karin Filijan, costume designer Jessica John, scenic designer and dialect coach Raygoza, and backdrop artist Ron Logan \u2013 come together to enhance this gem that does indeed shine. The final image, courtesy of the playwright, will rock you. I Promise.<\/p>\n

Played without an interval, the 96-minute production continues Thursdays through Saturdays at ion\u2019s Elaine Lipinsky Stage, closing Sept. 28.<\/p>\n

\u201cShining City\u201d<\/strong>
\nWHERE: ion theatre, 3704 Sixth Ave. (Hillcrest)<\/strong>
\nWHEN: Thursdays and Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 4 and 8 p.m. through Sept. 28<\/strong>
\nINFO: 619-6000-5020<\/strong>
\nWEB: iontheatre.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ion starts 10th anniversary season with a contemporary gem By Charlene Baldridge | SDUN Theater Critic Irish playwright Conor McPherson (b. Dublin, 1971) has written other plays seen in San Diego, specifically \u201cThe Weir\u201d at The Old Globe Theatre and \u201cThe Seafarer\u201d seen at San Diego Repertory Theatre.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":246498,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"Making us human","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11547,11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-246497","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-features","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246497","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=246497"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/246497\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/246498"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=246497"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=246497"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=246497"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}