His script is loosely based around the documented legal case of Angelina Napolitano, who in 1911 murdered her sleeping husband with an ax on Easter morning in Canada's Sault St. Marie. She was sentenced to death, but instead spent more than a decade in prison before being released.

Opening night of the University of Alaska Anchorage Mainstage production showed that this play has tremendous value as social commentary as well as serious theater. Directed by Fran Lautenberger, the play uses several elements of the Greek drama to draw parallels between the past and the present, especially concerning the condition of women in patriarchal societies. The whole production takes place on a stylized jumble of what appears to be the ruins of an ancient Greek theater (with scene design by Brent Glenn).

A gruesome tale on the surface, it becomes more tragic as the details and Canino's dramatic extrapolations of the events surrounding the murder are revealed.

The plot transitions back and forth from the turn of the 20th century to contemporary Toronto, with brief, well-timed interjections by Clytemnestra, murderer of her husband Agamemnon in the Greek tragedy of Aeschylus.

Amelia (Christian Gold) is a modern woman trying to do and have it all. Raising her teenaged daughter while trying to earn a master's degree in Women's Studies, she must also cope with the disapproving eye of her Italian mother, Rafaella (Jennifer Faulkner), who feels that for Amelia to end her crumbling marriage with a divorce would stain the family reputation.

The connections among the lives of Amelia, Rafaella, Angelina (Mariko Sarafin) and even ancient Clytemnestra create the central shaping idea of Canino's play. Each of the women must find their way of reacting to poor marriages and abusive husbands -- all played with chilling authenticity by Brandon Lawrence -- family secrets and a culture of Italian tradition that Amelia describes as "being trapped in a room with no door," until she must fight her way out with her violence and anger.

With some telling and provocative cast doubling, the connections among the characters keep growing until they come together with a disturbing clarity. Multiple supporting roles are played by Krista Schwarting, Paul Bryner, Lydian Blossom and Missy Williams.

Though domestic abuse and its consequences are at the crux of the play, it is also about racism, culture, and family relationships that must transcend the effects of destructive violence and the guilt and shame that follow.

UAA's production is almost a great one. A mixed cast of experienced and student actors create a few rough spots in an otherwise smooth presentation, but on the whole, Lautenberger has put together a fully satisfactory piece of theater. Strong language and intense violent situations call for a mature audience.

Jamie Newsom is a member of the American Theater Critic's Association.

Review

UAA Department of Theatre and Dance, Arts Building, Mainstage Theatre