THE HANGOVER REPORT – Tina Satter’s IS THIS A ROOM is a verbatim transcript reclaimed as a Pinter play

TL Thompson, Pete Simpson, Emily Davis, and Becca Blackwell in Tina Satter's "Is This A Room" at the Vineyard Theatre. Photo by Carol Rosegg.

TL Thompson, Pete Simpson, Emily Davis, and Becca Blackwell in Tina Satter’s “Is This A Room” at the Vineyard Theatre. Photo by Carol Rosegg.

Last night, Is This A Room concocted by Tina Satter (she also directs) opened Off-Broadway at the Vineyard Theatre. Ms. Satter’s new play is in essence a word-for-word staging of the transcript – including redactions – of the real life FBI investigation of Reality Winner, an Air Force veteran who leaked highly confidential information proving Russian interference in the 2016 elections (Ms. Winner currently remains imprisoned per the Espionage Act).

Interesting concept, but does it make for good theater, though? Would the theatrical experience be wasted on those unfamiliar with Ms. Winner’s story, particularly given the redactions in the transcript? I would argue no, although the play does ultimately come across as somewhat slight (the production runs a brisk 70 minutes). In fact, I would further argue that ignorance is, in this case, bliss. Taken out of context, Is This A Room exudes the suffocating but unnamable menace so pervasive in Harold Pinter’s plays, as well as the kind of existential angst Samuel Beckett excelled in depicting. Not bad for a staging of a verbatim transcript.

As director, Ms. Satter has given the play a stripped-down but austerely sleek look (the anxiety-inducing sound and lighting design do the heavy lifting) that maximizes the Pinteresque and Beckettian elements that are surprisingly inherent in the text. And as for the performances, they’re excellent across the board. As Reality Winner – or more effectively an Everywoman – Emily Davis does a sensational job of depicting a person under escalating emotional duress. As the FBI officers, TL Thompson, Pete Simpson, and Becca Blackwell play their roles perfectly – only suggestively bullying our anti-heroine and waving their blunt masculinity around with pride. They’re all the more terrifying because of their passive aggressiveness.

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IS THIS A ROOM
Off-Broadway, Play
Vineyard Theatre
1 hour, 10 minutes (without an intermission)
Through November 10

Categories: Off-Broadway, Theater

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