"Review of ATC’s Production of “The Kite Runner”
by Marc Hansen
by Marc Hansen
The first show of the Arizona Theatre Company’s 09-10 season is an adaptation of the acclaimed best-selling novel The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. I haven’t read the book yet, so unfortunately I won’t be able to compare it to it’s original source (as I’m sure fans of the book are wondering if this production does it justice). I have, however, talked to some who have read the novel and they say the play certainly contains more of the emotional impact from the book, as opposed to the movie which instead put in lots of cool shots of kites flying.
But if you are new to the material, like me, I’d highly recommend it. As for fans of the novel-I’d see it just to see it, even if it isn’t as good as the novel. The material is dark and very emotional, so it’s not for everyone, but if you’re willing to give it a chance, it will engage, entertain, and most importantly, make you feel and care for the characters. I assume most of what’s best in the play stems from the novel, because really the best thing about the production is simply the story. Yes, the sets are beautifully constructed, the music adds to the atmosphere, there are over four hundred costumes and the acting is, for the most part, very good, (as you can always expect from the ATC) but what makes this play really great is the story. It’s truly excellent, and that’s rare these days.
The play starts out in Kabul, Afghanistan in the 1970s. It follows a young boy Amir, an aspiring writer who loves movies, but whose father wants him to play sports. Instead, Amir feels his father’s attention is mostly on Amir’s best friend/servant Hassan, who Amir would never actually admit he likes, because he is Amir’s servant. Hassan, on the other hand, is almost too loyal. He’s such an angel, but you feel so bad for him, because he would literally do anything for Amir, but Amir wouldn’t do so for him. One of these things include when a group of teenage bullies threaten to rape Hassan if he doesn't give them a ske Amir won, but Hassan endures it because he's so faithful to Amir. Amir witnesses this (though he doesn’t think Hassan notices him) and yet doesn’t do anything about it. The guilt he feels haunts him forever.
Of course, the play wouldn’t work if it wasn’t adapted well, which it is (by Matthew Spangler), but it does sometimes stumble over trying to take novel conventions and apply them to the stage. For one, the narration of adult Amir (Barzin Akhavan) during the first act, which chronicles Amir’s childhood, which I guess is necessary because without it you would lose his point of view and thoughts, but at the same time it just seems kind of unusual with adult Amir always standing in the background, like the ghost of Christmas past, while the rest of the story continues. Obviously, Spangler understood that why the book worked and the movie (which didn’t include this) didn’t was because you had Amir’s thought process, but it’s hard to include that in a play (which is why it was probably written as a novel in the first place). Thankfully Akhavan’s performance makes it work.
There’s also a fight scene in the second act between Amir and the main bully (pretty much an Afghan version of Kiefer Sutherland in Stand by Me). Unfortunately, they actually “acted” out the fight, even though everyone could tell neither of them were hitting each other (but I guess we’re supposed to believe they are because they would each fall back and make groans). This was just disappointing. This is a play! You shouldn’t have a fight scene. The strengths in this play are emotions, not action. If they didn’t want to cut it out, they could have at least handled it better, like they handled the “rape scene” in the beginning, which was beautifully done (the actors run off stage and Akhavan describes the action).
That’s one bad example of the translation from text to stage, but there were scenes that don’t usually fit into the play format, that I thought still worked really well. Like the aforementioned “rape scene” and the “kite running” scene where young Amir and Hassan win the race, which seems realistic even though they obviously weren’t holding real kites, but my mind filled in the blanks because of the execution and the fact that I was into the story. The music composed by a brilliant Tabla player Salar Nader really helped here.
Another aspect which really surprised me was the amount of humor in the play. Whenever you hear people talk about this story, they always mention how deep and powerful the story is, but you never hear about how funny it is, as Thomas Fiscella (who perfectly plays the father) mentioned to me. He, in particular, gets some of the funniest moments, like when he and Amir first arrive in 80's America, after enduring the hardships of war, and the ensemble breaks out into disco, or the old Vietnamese grocery store owner who tries to kick Fiscella’s character out of her store.
Overall, despite its few flaws, I really enjoyed ATC’s production of “The Kite Runner.” At its heart, and what makes it so good, is a really excellent story, but this production does a great job in retelling it, especially in the first act, which is just perfection in every way (the second act drags a little). It also contains a magnificent twist, which I didn’t see coming at all but makes so much sense once it happens, and a really excellent performance by the lead, Barzin Akhavan. He might be the biggest highlight of the play. He really tugs at your heartstrings and makes you feel his pain. This guy is going places (too bad young Amir sounds like Andy Kaufman). All in all, while I wouldn’t see the play again, I’m really glad I did see it and would definitely recommend it. And best of all, the play made me want to go out and read the book.
Overall Grade: B+
The Kite Runner is playing at the Temple of Music and Art presently until October 3rd.
