It's not the person who holds the deck of cards who wins the game, the defiant R. P. McMurphy learns far too late in his battle of the wits with Nurse Ratched in Dale Wasserman's powerful "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." Rather, it's the person who controls the action – and there's no doubt in Wesley Nethercott's staging just who holds the power in Matrix Theatre's production at the YMCA Boll Family Theatre in downtown Detroit.
And contrary to what McMurphy – a prisoner who's faking his mental illness in order to avoid "hard time" at a work farm – believes, it's not him!
Set in the early 1960s in the day room of a mental hospital, McMurphy finds himself in the company of patients who have been seemingly browbeaten into submission by the manipulative head nurse. "This nuthouse isn't big enough for the two us," the cocky and rambunctious McMurphy boasts to the group. And so he challenges Ratched for control of the game, but the deck, he learns, is not stacked in his favor.
With the Boll's stadium-style seating on opposite sides of the performance space, Nethercott allows the audience to become a silent participant in his psychological drama, as if sitting in an operating room theater observing the surgery below.
And what we're watching is a handful of fine performances.
As Ratched, Andrea Scobie declares war on her foe through carefully chosen words delivered effectively with pinpoint precision. Scobie has mastered the art of the subtle expression change – and she employs it throughout exceptionally well.
Eric W. Maher's two meltdowns as the stuttering Billy Bibbit are textbook examples of an actor who's totally in control of his performance – and his character.
But it's Stephen Blackwell who dominates the stage as the bombastic McMurphy. He hits all the right notes as the big, intimidating and charming lout – and one hopes the actor's stay in his hometown is a long and fruitful one.
Other performances vary – but everyone remains in character at all times, even during the scene changes.
However, one wishes director Nethercott delivered more powerful punches with his climaxes. Although the tensions are beautifully built to their expected payoffs, the resulting explosions are far too brief and not totally satisfying.
'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'
Matrix Theatre Company at the Boll Family YMCA, 1401 Broadway, Detroit. Thu.-Sun., through Nov. 11. Tickets: $15. For information: 313-967-0599 or http://www.matrixtheatre.org
