Blake Hackler’s Enemies/People is a viscerally satisfying attempt to clarify and bolster Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People, though somewhat extreme. I must state upfront, while I know the premise of this particular drama, I have never read or seen it performed. Thomas Stockman fights to stop the spread of poison through mineral baths. Those in power oppose him, as the baths would salvage their nearly destitute town. They exploit the ignorance of the masses, painting Stockman as elitist and subversive. The result is a polarization between altruism and survival instinct. Or maybe moral relativism and the need to prevent danger?
Hackler has set this parable of virtue and flawed character in present day Texas, in a city in danger of financial ruin. Stockman and his brother are both on the Board of Directors for a spa that could generate considerable revenue. On a hunch, Tom, goes to a scientist friend who discovers the water is tainted, probably due to fracking. Despite the warning to go slow, Tom gives a friend permission to release the information on a blog. The story gets media traction, and the fracas culminates to a heated debate in City Hall.
Hackler takes considerable pains to tie Enemies/People to current issues, including President # 45, blind loyalty, immigrant abuse and cultural permission to be narcissistic, racist and greedy. On the one hand it’s exhilarating and absorbing, on the other it does seem to go a bit overboard. At the outset Tom’s imperative seems obvious, but gradually layers of equivocation are added, his motives, judgment and past failures are tossed into the mix. Complications and/or tangential themes are introduced. Enemies/People never lacks for density and it moves quickly. It’s testy and intense.
Enemies/People begs comparisons between the original text and the show we’re watching. In voiceover reflection, the playwright describes Ibsen’s script as a sausagefest, i.e., no girls. [Can we not gauge relevance when the disenfranchised were denied a seat at the table?] Is Hackler suggesting because Ibsen depicted the actuality of his times, that he lacks insight? It’s not always easy to tell. Perhaps Hackler is embracing diversity to mock it, or suggesting the more we try, the more we resist evolution? Enemies/People raises compelling questions and there are times when Thomas seems fiercely, palpably heroic. I’m not sure though, that this version’s ambitious need to strive for contemporary context, equals the experience. That being said, Hackler’s Enemies/People is well worth your time.
Second Thought Theatre presents: Enemies/People playing June 13th-July 7th, 2018. Bryant Hall. 3636 Turtle Creek Blvd, Dallas, Texas 75219. 1-866) 811-4111. info@secondthoughttheatre.com