In August of 1892, Lizzie Borden murdered her father Andrew, and her stepmother, Abby, with an ax, thus securing her name in history. Andrew Borden was wealthy three times over, and presided over the family fortune. After the demise of their mother, Lizzie and her sister Emma lived with Andrew and Abby, a stepmother who was hostile and greedy. She convinced her new husband to give generously to she and her relatives, while her stepdaughters had very little. The coup de grace came when she convinced himto cut his daughters from the will. This wasn’t just about avarice. Andrew Borden had more than enough money to keep everyone well provided for, but apparently had little feeling for Lizzie and Emma. It speaks volumes that despite the overwhelming evidence against her, and prevailing American attitudes of the 19th Century, that a jury of twelve exonerated Lizzie Borden. She left court a free woman.
Theatre Three’s current production of Steven Cheslik-deMeyer, Tim Maner, and Alan Steven Hewett’s Lizzie is nothing short of electrifying. The all-female cast: Presley Duyck (Lizzie) Ja’Naye Flanagan (Emma Borden) Lauren Urso Gray (Alice Russo) Lauren LeBlanc (Bridget) are angry and ferocious, wailing and roaring and stomping and gobs of howling despair. There are no men in the cast, so the story is told without distortion by the sisters, Bridget the housekeeper, and Alice, their neighbor. We never see the parents, and disturbing incidents (such as the actual murder) happen offstage. More explanation than execution. Like volcanic opera, spoken dialogue is nearly non-existent, and the emotions soar. They pace the stage like caged tigers, in a state of barely contained frenzy. It’s less an allegory on female oppression than a furious indictment of male-dominated culture. A secular beatification of a female hero that turned on her oppressors. There’s also a demented, defiant ghoulishness that makes no apologies for the blood that drenches Lizzies clothes.
So what’s going on in Lizzie? I wonder if younger members of the audience would gather the upshot? The attitude of the actors, their disappointment and frank witness to what it means to inhabit a world that will never let them prosper, or succeed, or defend themselves or simply taste the sublime. These churning degradations and wounds and sorrows are so well articulated, so authentic, so canny. It doesn’t seem to leave room for doubt. It’s a seething, alarming, brazen spectacle with blazing colors and the fearlessness of acting out without apology. It could have easily digressed to political screed or ideological rant, but instead we feel the tragic enactment of ruined lives. Perhaps a mashup of Marat/Sade, The Threepenny Opera and My Sister in This House?
Theatre Three presents: Lizzie, playing September 28th-October 29th, 2023. 2688 Laclede Street, Suite 120, Dallas, Texas 75201. 214-871-3300. theatre3dallas.com