JENNIFER FARRAR
Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Would a 21st-century American mother really consider giving her 3-year-old son to a Tibetan monastery because he was allegedly a reincarnated Buddhist monk?
Melding modern Western life with ancient Tibetan spirituality is the ambitious goal of playwright Sarah Ruhl in her sensitively whimsical new play “The Oldest Boy.” The folkloric production that opened Monday night at Lincoln Center Theater is laced with Buddhist teachings, Western doubt, artistic puppetry, mystical imagery, dreams and premonitions, and ceremonial interludes featuring elaborately costumed dancers.
Two-time Pulitzer Prize nominee Ruhl (“In the Next Room, or the vibrator play” and “The Clean House”) takes on issues of parental attachment and Eastern versus Western cultural differences. The importance of tradition and the mysteries of reincarnation are other themes that shape the play, amid clever staging by Rebecca Taichman that creates a reflective yet gently humorous atmosphere.
Ruhl’s dialogue, sometimes straightforward and sometimes allegorical, is woven with symbolism, asking thoughtful questions about metaphysical connections, the meaning of motherhood, and the value of a good teacher.
Celia Keenan-Bolger, most recently seen on Broadway in her Tony Award-nominated performance as Laura in “The Glass Menagerie,” is quite appealing and intentionally awkward as the confused, modern mother of 3-year-old Tenzin. After he’s revealed by a pair of visiting Tibetan monks to be the reincarnation of a high-level Buddhist teacher, the monks seek his parents’ permission to take Tenzin to a Buddhist monastery in India, to train him to be a spiritual master again.
Tenzin’s father, a chef who’s a Tibetan-born Buddhist, (a sturdy portrayal by James Yaegashi), gently reminds his horrified wife that, in any case, there would be “many separations ahead” for a mother and son. But naturally, both parents are unwilling to give away their precious toddler, even for a higher purpose.
Ernest Abuba voices three-year-old Tenzin, (a charming puppet, gracefully manipulated by two chorus members), while retaining the gravity of his character’s former advanced spirituality. Seen only by the audience, his constant presence with Tenzin allows us to believe in the possibility of Tenzin’s reincarnation.
Taichman uses evocative background projections, thoughtful silences and delicate musical bridges as the story shifts from urban America to the moonlit mountains of India. Ruhl doesn’t provide pat answers, leaving the audience with fragmented memories of a glimpse into a world of ancient tradition. Perhaps the powerful bond between disciple and mentor can transcend life and death, and that very possibility has the power to bring a little grace to the modern world.
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Online: http://www.lct.org/shows/the-oldest-boy
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