Three Hotels, Feb 3 2000

 by Jon Robin Baitz

 at La Mama until February 13, 2000

Reviewer: Kate Herbert

Remember the uproar in the western world when Nestles sold baby formula to the third world? Women in Africa had no clean water, could not read the directions, did not understand how to prepare it, diluted it to make it last longer. Children died.

Three Hotels, by US playwright Jon Robin Baitz, is a play with this issue at its core. Kenneth Hoyle (Jeff Keogh OK) is marketing manager for an American company selling formula to developing nations. The problem is that US companies have not helped them develop very far.

Ken became hardened and unscrupulous after a tragic incident in his family. His wife, Barbara, (Susan Gorence) is shattered by the deterioration in her husband's ethics. The couple used to be in the idealistic Peace Corps that offered truly unprejudiced and non-profit aid to countries in need.

Ken and Barb - the resemblance to that similarly named plastic couple must be intentional - are seen in three hotels in three cities: Morocco, The Carribean and Mexico. At each point, the marriage has collapsed a little further while Ken's career seems to be rising - or is it?

The corporate world cares nothing for loyalty. Sales figures, corporate image and the matching designer wife mean everything. Redundancy is a mere slip of the tongue away.

The play raises harsh issues about capitalism and America's relentless abuse and exploitation of third world markets. "People are not real "to these corporate raiders. Community does not exist. Christianity is what we do on Sundays and donations are what we give to presidential candidates.

This production, directed simply by Ezra Bix, maintains an intimate style. Voices are low, actors talk to the audience. Keogh plays Ken as "the gentleman farmer" who lulls clients and staff into a false security. Gorence, as Barb, provides the heart and a sense of anguish.

 Often, the performances are so restrained that the voices are inaudible However, the main drawback in this style is that the dynamic range of this dark and emotional drama is lost. there is passion in both of these characters: love and anger need to be given their heads at some time.

The results of the western world's greed is not merely damage to the third world. Our ethics and our relationships suffer too.

by Kate Herbert