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Regional Reviews: Washington, D.C. Cherokee Also see Susan's reviews of Much Ado About Nothing, King Hedley II, The Metromaniacs, Dunsinane and Godspell
Woolly and director John Vreeke previously staged another of D'Amour's plays, Detroit, which considered the opposite issue: people trying to maintain their normalcy as the world around them collapses. The current play follows two couples from Houston during their vacation at a campsite near Cherokee, North Carolina, and how their experiences veer away from anything they expected. For context, Cherokee is the home of the Eastern Band of Cherokee—the descendants of the Cherokee who remained when the rest of the tribe were herded to Oklahoma on the Trail of Tears. The majority of the area's economy is based on Cherokee-related tourism, boosted by the opening of a casino in 1997. John (Paul Morella) works in management for an oil company; he and Mike (Thomas W. Jones II) have been friends since they worked together on an oil rig years earlier. John's wife Janine (Jennifer Mendenhall) is a teacher and Traci (Erica Chamblee), who recently married Mike, is meeting the others for the first time on this trip. Both John and Janine are looking for a chance to live a more "natural" life, away from the constraints of their home, jobs, and family. John even wishes for "something bad to happen" that will bring him insight and awareness. John's wish comes true when one of the other campers goes missing. The rest stay on until they can figure out what happened and befriend Josh (Jason Grasl), a Cherokee who acts in the area's outdoor historical drama and provides (as they think) a link to ancient native wisdom. Vreeke has guided his actors to give naturalistic performances even as the script pushes their characters into unexpected situations. Morella's barely restrained panic, Jones' eerie calm, Mendenhall's leashed frustration, Chamblee's uncertainty, and Grasl's all-embracing warmth mesh to create a strong ensemble. Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
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