New Confusing take on Uncle Tom

The Coyote Theatre's production of a modern adaptation of the old Harriet Beecher Stowe classic, re-titled for the stage as Uncle Tom's Cabin; Or, the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, contains many poignant, thoughtful, funny and touching moments, but lacks overall coherence.

The story follows the lives of several slaves, virtuous and noble Uncle Tom, owned by dying little Eva, whose last wish is to give Tom his freedom, Topsy, a young girl with no parents or relatives and nothing to hold on to, and several others.

The adaptation relies too heavily on the audience's knowledge of the novel, and for those unfamiliar the work, its quick vignettes of the storyline serve more to complicate than illustrate the ideas and events of the book.

Much of this is due to the rather avant-garde methods of the production. Five actors play several different characters, but in addition to playing more than one character, they swapped these characters with other actors. The result was that Uncle Tom was played by almost every single actor at least once in the production.

This was very interesting, but also extremely confusing, especially for those of us unfamiliar with the novel. It was difficult to keep the characters straight and therefore many plot elements were lost as the audience straggled behind, taking moments to reorient themselves with new actors playing the parts.

To make matters worse, the actors were flubbing a lot of lines, making the production feel like a dress rehearsal. Unfortunately, sloppy acting is rarely excusable. One actor did join the production very late to replace an actor that had to leave, but he was no worse than the others. In the hopes that the cast members were having an off night, I will give them the benefit of the doubt, and focus on the more positive aspects of the production from here on in, which was by no means a failure.

Rather, it was a risky production and risks taken in theater should always be applauded. There are many moments in this production that are well worth watching and the production is definitely an interesting and intellectual alternative to more mindless forms of evening entertainment.

So, while confusing, the interchangeability of the actors was intriguing. For example in one combination, a white man played Uncle Tom, a black slave, while a black man played his white slave owner. This takes the emphasis off of the characters and places it on what they are actually saying to each other. None of the characters are continuous, as they are played by different actors, and therefore the characters change slightly. The only consistency is in the language.

This language is about how people treat one another. One man owns another man. Does it matter which one is black? No _ therefore either actor can play either part and they do. The point is that owning a human being is wrong, not just owning a black human being is wrong, which would stand out more in a traditional adaptation of the novel.

The production rings true in that its central theme stands out amidst the confusion. Treating any human being as anything less than an equal to yourself, should not be done. We should never identify others through their race, but rather, through their actions.

Uncle Tom's Cabin runs from Oct. 10 - Nov. 2 at the Boston Center for the Arts Call 617-426-ARTS for ticket information