“Green Eyes” is a site-specific production of a long-lost Tennessee Williams short brought to Boston by Company One.
Though the concept and its execution are superb, the play itself can hardly be called one of Williams’ finest. The 45-minute morning-after story is predictable, dull and lacking the sizzle that usually makes Williams so great.
What makes this production special, however, is that it’s set in a hotel room where 25 spectators witness the savagery of a violent pair of newlyweds on the first day of their honeymoon. Clad only in their underwear — his significantly less revealing than hers — the duo spar within inches of the front row of spectators, making the whole experience feel tawdry and voyeuristic.
Though their conversion of the stunning guest room at the Ames Hotel into a seedy ’70s-style New Orleans dump isn’t terribly convincing (especially when the Orange line trains rumble below), the actors are so believable that you easily feel like you’ve been sucked into their vortex of seedy chaos.
Erin Markey is superb as the manipulative, sexually-charged minx hell-bent on meeting her own needs and desires. Whether staring at a flame, ferociously attacking her man or momentarily going blank when she learns he won’t be supporting her, Markey’s consistently stellar performance is nearly spellbinding.
Though Alan Brincks earns raves for his angry outbursts and fighting flashbacks, some of his finest work happens when he’s lying in bed smoking a cigarette and clutching the bottle of bourbon. You can almost smell the stale and foul stench of his pathetic life.
The duo creates such revolting chemistry you might feel like you need a shower when your 45 minutes are up.
Plot points
The morning after they’re married, Claude Dunphy and his bride definitely have sex on their mind, but not for obvious reasons. Covered with bites and bruises indicative of a wild night, Mrs. Dunphy cagily deflects the inquiries from her drunken husband, who remembers nothing.
