Tynan's Anger

It’s impossible to discuss Missa Solemnis or the Play About Henry without mentioning that I happened to see it the same day California's Proposition 8 was passed into law. The politics of Proposition 8 are virtually identical to those of 2000’s Proposition 22, the law that prompted the suicide of gay Mormon Henry Stuart Mathis (the one difference being that this time, voters were taking away rights that homosexuals had previously been awarded). In both cases, the Mormon church played a heavy role in bankrolling the anti-gay marriage efforts.

Playwright Roman Fesser had to contend with current events while creating a work of drama that could stand firm in its own right. He may not have completely succeeded, but the results are stunning. Through a deceptively cunning narrative structure, Fesser has forced audiences to internalize Henry Mathis's struggle, and Missa Solemnis succeeds as a play both timely and convincing in its portrayal of a tortured soul who, as in all good tragedies, is a noble human being trapped by circumstance.

It's important to remember that Mormon hatred of gays is not just homophobia: it’s an increasingly crucial part of an all-encompassing theology, a theology that is, to its adherents, perfect and infallible. Yet that theology stands in direct conflict with human biology, an all-encompassing system of beliefs in its own right. In New York, of course, the latter point of view dominates.

In a good Mormon household, conversely, the dividing line is much blurrier. Mormons accept modern medicine and general science, except when its ambiguities clash with a question that is inflexible in terms of Mormon thought. Above, I called Mathis a gay Mormon. Let me correct myself: there is no such thing as a gay Mormon. Central to Mathis’ struggle is the fundamental incompatibility of the Mormon belief, via Christianity, that attraction to the same gender is a wicked behavior, with the belief that homosexuality is innate in a percentage of individuals. An individual can combine the two as he pleases, but if he does so, he has stepped outside the bounds of Mormonism.

To a liberal New York audience, explaining rigid religious faith, especially a faith as peculiar as Mormonism, may as well be like talking to a Martian. I also expect that Missa Solemnis will consistently draw a majority gay audience. But in order for the play to work, Fesser has to put his audience deep into the Mormon mindset of Henry Mathis (played with unflinching earnestness by Matt Huffman). The results are jarring, and at times painfully awkward. Henry delivers lines like “My devotion to Heavenly Father is palpable,” and “I have felt the Holy Ghost before and I know with dedication and prayer he will guide me.” Contractions are eschewed, and the mannerisms, speech patterns, and meter seem like they are from another century. Fesser, a Long Islander turned undercover Mormonologist, struggles to reach a balance in these early scenes, not helped at all by his cold passion play-like opener.

But while these initial scenes may kill the play’s early momentum by telling rather than showing, they do succeed in getting you into Henry Mathis’ mindset. In the middle and later sections, when Henry actively confronts his demons, the nuances of his struggle become immediately clear. The yeoman work of the early scenes pays dividends when Henry meets with Bishop Robert Rhodes (Warren Katz), whose own sexuality is made somewhat ambiguous.

The story comes to full fruition with Henry’s love affair with Manhattan socialite Todd (Jai Catalano, who provides the character with the necessary effortless simpatico). Todd is baffled but intrigued by Henry's devout religious faith, and he remains open to Henry’s spirituality mainly because of the irascible charm of Henry himself. Todd’s view is most similar to that of a New York audience, but because the scene comes much later in the play, the focus stays entirely on Henry’s struggle. You can see in Huffman’s face just how drawn he is to Todd, but also how much his faith violently tugs at that attraction every time he lets it show.

In the play’s final scenes, we again see Henry trade teary conversations with his parents. This time, Fesser achieves much more urgent and well-written dialogue, as Henry announces to his parents that he has bought a gun. In the play’s devastating final scene at Henry's funeral, Todd solemnly introduces himself to Henry’s mother Marilyn (Gail Winar). The last line: “My name is Todd, Todd Elliot. I‘m from New York. I was a friend of your son’s.” There are larger themes at play in this final scene, where we see the humble introduction of Todd's world to Marilyn's under the circumstances of a faith-based tragedy. That kind of humble introduction is perhaps the only way these two worlds can ever come close to existing in harmony. If only it didn’t take tragedy to make sure that any future Proposition 8 will never succeed again.

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Missa Solemnis or the Play About Henry by Roman Fesser. Directed by Linda S. Nelson; scenic design by Marisa Merrigan; costume design by David B. Thompson; lighting design by Graham T. Posner; sound design by Justin Utley. Photos by Posner.

Starring Jai Catalano (Todd Elliot), Bill Fairbairn (Fred Matis), Matt Huffman (Henry Matis), Warren Katz (Bishop Bob Rhodes), and Gail Winar (Marilyn Matis).

Missa Solemnis or the Play About Henry runs through November 22nd at the TBG Arts Complex, 312 W. 36th St (3rd Floor). For tickets, call 212-868-4444 or order tickets online.

Labels: 2008-2009, henry stuart mathis, miss solemnis or the play about henry, Mormons, new york, proposition 8, roman fesser, theater review