By Venus Zarris

Dublin Carol is a bittersweet memory play about a man whose life was almost completely ruined by drinking and the, still heavy, price he pays for his past. When his estranged daughter shows up on Christmas Eve, she offers him a slight chance at reconciliation.

Amy Morton directs a solid cast in a visually attractive yet austere production that gets everything right on the surface but shows little signs of much existing underneath the tight delivery of dialogue. Lines, interactions and reactions are effective but appear telegraphed. They are routed in the right direction and reach the appropriate emotional destinations but lack spontaneity.

It feels like the production is playing it safe. It feels like the goal is more to get through it without incident, rather than to create a fully realized reality that includes the sloppiness of unresolved conflict. The Irish accents are consistent but less than believable. Words like ’shite,’ instead of shit, and ‘paypal,’ instead of people, are given such unnatural emphasis that it sounds like AmerIrish. That is, Americans delivering Irish accents thereby loosing the lovely lyricism of the language.

William Petersen plays John, the mostly recovering alcoholic undertaker. This is a meaty role and Petersen renders it with skill but there is noticeable trepidation as if he doesn’t fully allow himself to immerse in the character. Stephen Louis Grush plays Mark, his young assistant. Grush is convincing and likeable.

Nicole Wiesner delivers the strongest performance as the beat down daughter, exhausted from her mother’s terminal illness and cautiously attempting connection with her charming but detached father. But it seems that her character is being held back as well.

Kevin Depinet’s scenic design beautifully creates the back room set to lived in and dated picture perfection.

When the primary action of the story exists in the past, we HAVE to believe the past is as tangible as the present but sadly there is no emotional evidence of a life before the dialogue begins. This could very well be a production that, like a good Irish whiskey, matures well with age. The opening performance seemed like a bit of a struggle but showed all of the signs of a potentially excellent offering once the actors get a little more comfortable in their parts. For now, Steppenwolf’s seasonal offering of Dublin Carol is interesting, but too subdued and dramatically light to be totally compelling and it illustrates that restraint sometimes needs to be restrained.

2 STARS

(”Dublin Carol” runs through January 4 at Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted St. 312-335-1650.)

Steppenwolf Theatre Company - Chicago Theater, World-Class Ensemble

Dublin Carol production photos by Michael Brosilow.

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