“That’s
socialism!” an angry character shouts in “One-Third of a Nation,” a
play written during the Depression and now revived by the Metropolitan
Playhouse. “It’s unconstitutional!” yells another, the president of a
mortgage company.
Those
accusations, in response to suggestions that the government intervene
in the free market, garner extra laughs from the audience, given the
current political climate. Yet they also stir lots of emotions in a
production that’s full of passion, at least until it turns preachy.
“One-Third
of a Nation,” written by Arthur Arent for the Living Newspaper unit of the Federal Theater
Project, was first staged in 1938. Part history lesson, part protest,
the play uses a series of sketches to dramatize ghastly housing
conditions and to condemn corruption, speculators and slumlords. Much
of the script remains fresh, with a wry, invisible narrator and
characters who step out of scenes to comment on the action, which
traverses more than 200 years.
But
after a highly effective hour and a half the story slows to focus on,
among other things, legislation to finance public housing. What had
been a depiction of humans in appalling situations turns didactic, and
the final 45 minutes sometimes drag.
Still,
the cast of 11, directed by Alex Roe, is always a pleasure to watch.
Playing more than 100 characters, the actors deftly handle both comedy
and tragedy, and change accents and roles with ease. Teresa Kelsey and
Howard Thoresen are particularly skilled in their many parts.
Despite
its dated segments “One-Third of a Nation” is a compelling look at the
past as well as a tale with parallels to modern struggles. Time may
have tarnished some of its scenes. But its cry for simple decency
hasn’t grown old.
