By Charlene Baldridge | SDUN Theatre Critic
Renowned actor/playwright Anna Deavere Smith brings “Let Me Down Easy,” her most recent one-woman show, to San Diego Repertory Theatre April 27 to May 15. As always, her work involves social issues and is based on interviews with everyday people. The words she uses in this composite are theirs, not hers. Matters for discussion are the resilience of the human spirit when faced with the inconstancy, imperfection and aging of the human body, and the cost of health care to the individual and society. Smith interviewed renowned, cancer-stricken cyclist Lance Armstrong, Texas governor Ann Richards, a heavyweight boxer and a super model, among others. In the resulting show, Smith portrays more than 20 people.
“To write ‘Let Me Down Easy’ I interviewed over 300 people on three continents,” says the Baltimore native, whose journey with this piece began when she was invited to be a visiting professor at Yale University School of Medicine. “Really, me, a clown, to create something in such a serious, elite environment,” she asked herself. “I walked away from the experience with an increased compassion for doctor and patient alike. The stories stayed in my heart and became the basis of this play.”
“Let Me Down Easy” opened in October 2009 at New York’s Second Stage Theatre. Brought to San Diego by La Jolla Playhouse and San Diego Repertory Theatre in association with Vantage Theatre, this touring production is conceived, written and performed by Smith and directed by Leonard Foglia. It is even timelier and more moving now than when it was written, according to La Jolla Playhouse director Christopher Ashley, who goes on to say, “Anna Deavere Smith is a truly mesmerizing performer who artfully addresses serious issues in the community through her work. She once again hits her stride with this award-winning solo show tackling the nation’s health care system.”
In The New York Times (October 8, 2009), Christopher Isherwood wrote that even if you’ve had your fill of heated debate about the health care crisis — “informed, opinionated or just plain batty” — you can go without fear to “Let Me Down Easy,” which he calls “continually engaging” and “a vivid compendium of life experienced at its extremes.”
Smith’s prior solo shows are “Fires in the Mirror,” which concerns the riots in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and “Twilight: Los Angeles,” about racial unrest following the Rodney King verdict.
A recipient of the coveted MacArthur (Genius Award) Fellowship, Smith has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and has received numerous awards for acting and playwriting. She appeared in the films “Philadelphia” and “Rachel Getting Married” and has enjoyed recurring television roles, including “The West Wing,” “The Practice,” and “Nurse Jackie.”
Be certain to check San Diego Repertory Theatre’s “surround events” (www.sdrep.org) for opportunities to hear experts speak on the issues addressed in “Let Me Down Easy.” The show continues through May 15 at the Lyceum Theatre, 79 Horton Plaza, Downtown, with performances at 7 p.m. Wednesdays; 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays; and 7 p.m. Sundays. $30-$53, www.sdrep.org or (619) 544-1000.
