Lauded as one of the most influential works of 20th-century theatre, Angels in America is a poignant account of the AIDS crisis and the Reagan era, weaving together the stories of eight core characters struggling to find harmony among their beliefs, desires, and the societal roles they feel obligated to uphold. Tony Kushner’s modern masterpiece is an epic exploration of politics, religion, sexuality, and love that crescendos to an arresting finale in Part Two: Perestroika, which features the same cast as Part One: Millennium Approaches.
Central to the story is Prior Walter (Damien Atkins), a gay man recently abandoned by his lover Louis (Ryan Beil) after revealing his AIDS diagnosis. Atkins’ performance in the Arts Club’s production of Millennium Approaches earned a Jessie Award for Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role; the production itself received a total of nine nominations and also won for Outstanding Production.
The political tensions in Perestroika are certainly not bound to the onstage performance. In a gutsy move, Kushner included the real-life political fixer (and closeted gay man) Roy Cohn as a character in his play. Once a mentor and legal advisor for Donald Trump, Cohn bridges the play’s era and ours with topical themes.
As Director Kim Collier (Saint Joan, Tear the Curtain!) says, “Part Two’s set is not a slow deterioration of this ‘empire’; it is a natural event, like the AIDS crisis, that has happened suddenly—like an earthquake. This design world is from the perspective of the marginalized who feel abandoned, more afraid, and lost in a culture that seems to have no place for homosexuals, difference, or diversity. Perestroika is a magnificent second part to this epic story. It allows us to experience catharsis and hope for the characters we have gotten to know across the seven hours of theatre. And, through them, to experience catharsis and hope possibly in our own lives, too.”
ANGELS IN AMERICA PART TWO: PERESTROIKA
Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage
September 7 – October 8, 2017 (Media opening: September 13)
Tue–Thu at 7:30 pm, Fri & Sat at 8 pm, Wed at 1:30 pm, and Sat & Sun at 2 pm
Tickets from $29 at artsclub.com or the Arts Club Box Office at 604.687.1644
Photo: David Cooper