LA TIMES THEATER BEAT
Sacrifice and terror in Bosnia: 'Liberation'
A besieged Sarajevo newsroom becomes a microcosm of life under oppressive circumstances in "Liberation," presented by Rude Guerrilla Theater Company in Santa Ana.
Reviewed by Darryl H. Miller
Director Jody J. Reeves and nine actors bravely commit themselves to a story by Portland, Ore., playwright Steve Patterson that graphically depicts the devastation of artillery and arms fire. Copious amounts of fake blood have soaked through clothing and spilled onto the floor by the time this gritty presentation is over.
Set in the early 1990s during the Bosnian conflict, "Liberation" puts a daily newspaper's offices in harm's way when one of the reporters (Kristian Capalik) brings in a Serb army deserter (Justin L. Waggle) willing to reveal the atrocities his unit was ordered to commit in a Muslim community. In return, the deserter wants a guarantee of safe passage out of the country for himself and his sister (Jami McCoy). The army knows where he is, though, and soon the news offices have been sealed off and threatened with attack if the deserter isn't turned over.
As the clock ticks, the journalists -- a mix of Serbs, Croats and Muslims -- frantically try to think of a way to publish the revelation, if they can coax it out of the now frightened and recalcitrant deserter. The emotions that pour forth are compellingly conveyed by Waggle as the deserter, who turns hard and bitter as he is eaten alive with shame; Deborah Conroy and David Rusiecki, as husband-and-wife editors who must be compassionate yet ruthless as they make decisions that could mean life or death for their staff; and Andrew Nienaber, Melita Ann Sagar, Craig Johnson and Luz Violeta Govill as employees who may have to make the ultimate sacrifice for their profession.
Patterson pushes his plot and some of his characters too hard as he tries to tweak still more drama from an extreme situation. Still, he makes a strong statement about the power of information. His story is painful to witness, but it certainly resonates.
