by Miryam Gordon - SGN A&E Writer

CLIFFHOUSE
MACHA MONKEY (at Richard Hugo House)
Through March 30

Playwright Allison Gregory is allowing Macha Monkey to present her newest play as a world premiere. Cliffhouse is a mystery that starts out like a lighthearted comedy and gradually transitions, creating a real journey for both the audience and the characters.

Detailing that journey would essentially ruin it for audience members, which makes it much more challenging to write about. In essence, the experience of the play is all about that mystery. If you take that journey, you and your company may have lots to discuss afterward, debating what happens to those people - and where that Cliffhouse resort might be.

We're introduced to Cliff, the ultra-attentive servant of Cliffhouse, who provides each guest with instant attention, and may provide diversions and sustenance even before any is asked for. Vincent Delany plays Cliff with a detached air of bossy intrusion. Both entertainment director and maître d', he provides drinks before they're requested, along with card games and croquet.

AN ENIGMATIC GROUP
Cliff's guests include Lana (Kristina Sutherland), Glorie (Meaghan Halverson), and West (Troy Lund). At the beginning, they all look like they're there for some kind of weekend getaway. Eventually, when Lana decides she's had enough and wants to leave, it becomes clear that their 'contract' says they can't. They must stick it out.

Lana is an imperious woman who doesn't seem eager to bond with anyone. We learn that she's turning 40 and has been fighting cancer. She is particularly provoked by the eager, young Glorie, who embodies a joy of life and the promise of a yet-to-be-lived life ahead of her.

Glorie is enamored of poetry - in particular, Pablo Neruda. She has a deeply spiritual side, though her grasp of what she's told in her religious instruction appears to have gotten a bit skewed.

West is obsessed with rock climbing, spending all his time on what is supposedly a very high practice rock just off the Cliffhouse manor. Though every attempt is made to help the audience think he's dangling very far off the ground, that aspect of Robin Macartney's set design can't quite help us out. Other set details work well, however, including a representative drawing of a lone tree on the hillside, poised to fall.

Tess Malone's lighting creates moody time shifts and Kelsey McCornack's costumes suggest luscious beachwear. Director Meghan Arnette supports the shift from the breezy beginning to more mysterious middle and end. The inclusion of vast amounts of poetic speech, as written by Gregory, is tough to work with, but Arnette keeps the touch light and succeeds here as well.

While overall this production can be said to be successful, the character of West is problematic - both because his story is far less compelling than the others' and because he's not allowed to come down from that infernal rock. Also, while Lana seems turned off by Glorie for a long time, her antipathy doesn't seem to include West and there is no real reason for her to like him at all. In fact, much of the play could be done completely without that character. When you have only four characters in total, having one of them not work well is a real issue.

For more information, go to www.machamonkey.org or http://cliffhouse.brownpapertickets.com, or call 1-800-838-3006.

Discuss your opinions with sgncritic@gmail.com or go to www.facebook.com/SeattleTheaterWriters.

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