''Master Harold' … and the Boys' at TimeLine: In this ‘Master Harold,' the boy is already grown
Oppressive societies invariably subvert the natural authority of the older generation. In his apartheid-era masterpiece “‘Master Harold' … and the Boys,” Athol Fugard throws this horror into sharp relief by showing us two compassionate African men trying to be surrogate fathers to a white boy standing on the cusp of manhood.
They can't succeed, though, because the disempowering South African society in which Willie and Sam find themselves gives the immature young pup, Hally, the unearned authority to boss them around at will. It is a dramatic metaphor of devastating simplicity and force.
A significant problem with Jonathan Wilson's problematic new production for the TimeLine Theatre is that Hally is played by a young actor named Nate Burger, who reads on stage as 22 or 23 years old. That might now sound much of a difference from Hally's intended age of 17, but those are crucial years. On this wet and windy afternoon in his mother's Port Elizabeth tearoom in 1950, Hally stands on the cusp of deciding what kind of man he will be. The staffers Willie and Sam (played, respectively, by Daniel Bryant and Alfred H. Wilson) are fighting for nothing less than his soul.
Although he's clearly a talented young actor stuffed improbably into a school uniform, Burger is miscast (the contrast with the authenticity of the school kids in TimeLine's recent version of “The History Boys” is striking). Burger can't replicate standing on that teenage ledge — and the impact of the play suffers as a result. The basic trajectory of the drama is there, but this production doesn't raise the stakes enough. You don't feel like a boy can be saved, in real time, and you don't feel everyone's pain when the evils of this world seem to take him for their own.
Other aspects of the show work better. Alfred Wilson (no relation to the director) is an understated but unstintingly honest actor, and thus the loss of his character's patience at the climax of this play packs a strong emotional punch. And Bryant's Willie comes complete with a gentle kindness that radiates from the stage. The dancing scenes between these two men are warm, resonant and real.
I've seen productions that have taken more stylistic risks, employed more arresting pacing, and better found the rhythms of the era. But this show is staged on a richly detailed set by Timothy Mann and any chance to see “Master Harold” brings rewards. Every time you see this autobiographical work, its masterful minimalism reveals yet more about the human condition and the power of ordinary people who can both fight and care.
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