Abbey Theater to present ‘A Walk in the Woods’
Inspired by “A Walk in the Woods,” Lee Blessing’s Broadway play about an unlikely friendship that develops between two U.s./soviet arms negotiators, Abbey Theater of Dublin is to present the area premiere of the 1987 Pulitzer Prize finalist for drama, opening May 17 at the Dublin Community Recreation Center.
“One thing I realized I had to do was make this a play about two very human people so it wouldn’t feel dry, about just an issue,” Blessing said from Los Angeles.
What inspired the play?
Blessing wrote his play mid-1980s during the Cold War.
“At the time, there was a lot of saberrattling about nuclear weapons, and Russians dealing with their own pressures,” Blessing said.
He got the idea from news reports about Soviet Yuli Kvitsinsky and American Paul Nitze leaving their arms negotiations in the in 1982 in Geneva to take an unexpected walk in the woods for informal conversation.
“First and foremost, the play is about nuclear weapons. It examines, on a somewhat existential level, what humans can and can’t seem to be able to do on the subject of control,” Blessing said.
The stresses of work
Beyond his focus on the arms race and how differing Russian and American attitudes affected it, Blessing wanted to explore job pressures.
“It’s really a work play about how to keep going when you’re getting the opposite of encouragement,” he said.
Although each negotiator is highly qualified and serious about limiting nuclear arms, governmental pressures and national politics undermine their goal.
“These men are trying to do a job that their bosses are actually trying to keep them from doing... They’re being held back,” Blessing said.
The power of friendship
Blessing, 74, also sees friendship and age differences as underlying themes in the 100-minute two-part act.
“The play is about how we make friends and decide who’s important to us,” he said.
At different ages and stages of their careers, each man has different goals.
“The younger American is all business; the older Russian has much more experience. He understands they’re meant not to succeed so he’s made new goals, including making friends with the American,” Blessing said.
The rewards of a small play
Only two actors appear onstage throughout the production.
“There’s something wonderfully intimate about small-cast plays,” said Joe Bishara who co-directs the production with Scott Douglas Wilson.
“It’s important that the audience feels like they’re eavesdropping on a two-way conversation between two people making a concerted effort to get to know one another,” Bishara said.
As the negotiators meet over a full year, they learn about each other as people by taking more walks in the woods.
“The negotiations take twists and turns like a roller coaster,” Bishara said.
Despite tackling serious issues, the play finds humor amid high-stake uncertainties.
“A lot of humor is based on the fundamentally absurd situations that nations found themselves in,” Bishara said.
Who’s the American?
Bishara, 45, plays American John Honeyman.
“Fairly confident, he believes he’s
bringing to the table something new and fresh... As the negotiations move forward, he learns his arrogance stems from ignorance,” Bishara said.
“By the end, he understands it takes more than just the two of them to make it happen. He realizes it will continue to be examined well beyond their careers,” Bishara said.
At first, the American doesn’t grasp the political/cultural differences that might undermine the substantive agreement.
“The Russian negotiator tells him: ‘It’s nice, actually having a choice’ .... There’s so much we Americans take for granted about our individual freedoms and our opportunity to choose our path,” Bishara said.
Who’s the Russian?
Tom Holliday, 69, plays Andrey Botvinnik.
“Andrey is terribly urbane, articulate, witty and intelligent. He’s also wizened, having seen it all over the years,” Holliday said.
“Meeting this new American diplomat, he’s trying to establish a personal relationship that can help them reach real agreements once they get back from their walk to the negotiating table,” he said.
Holliday said he has dreamed of playing the Russian ever since he saw the 1989 PBS telecast with Sam Waterston and Robert Prosky, respectively, reprising their Broadway roles as the American and Russian.
“I knew I had to wait until I aged into the role... It’s really artful the way Lee Blessing balances the personal and the political,” Holliday said.
Why the play remains popular
Following its Broadway run and subsequent London run with Alec Guinness and Edward Hermann, “A Walk in the Woods” has been staged throughout Europe and North America, in Australia, Brazil, India and Russia.
“Very serious and very funny at the same time, the play’s had a big impact as my most-produced play abroad,” Blessing said.
Such success didn’t surprise him. “I assumed the play would be evergreen because of the nature of nuclear weapons. They don’t go away and controlling them is no small task, especially since that’s no longer just between the U.S. and Russia, but also a dozen other nations,” he said.
Have the issues faded?
While the Soviet Union no longer exists, the actors said they believe Blessing’s play hasn’t dated.
“When the Soviet Union was collapsing and evolving into what’s now modern-day Russia, everyone thought nuclear-arms worries might go away,” Holliday said. “But here we are in 2024, and the possibility of nuclear war has resurfaced with saber-rattling and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
Bishara agreed.
“Looking at what’s happening around the world,” he said, “you can swap out the countries in conflict and this play remains relevant.” mgrossberg1@gmail.com @mgrossberg1