WHAT—OR WHOM—SHALL BE DISCARDED?
Marin Theatre Company has never shied away from provocative material, and its current production, Waste, is no exception. Waste tells the story of politically ambitious and idealistic Henry Trebell (Lance Gardner) and the loss of his political dreams when his affair with Mrs. O’Connell (Liz Sklar), a married woman, becomes public knowledge. While the script left me cold at times, the acting, particularly Gardner’s commanding performance, was undeniable. Ultimately, it’s the talent on stage that elevates a stuffed script.
Amy O'Connell (Liz Sklar) and Henry Trebell (Lance Gardner)
Harley Granville-Barker’s 1907 play, banned for its themes of infidelity, abortion, and political maneuvering, scandalized Edwardian audiences. Today, such controversies barely raise an eyebrow—just more reality TV fodder. As Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr wrote in 1849, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.”
Lucy Davenport (Anna Takayo) and Henry Trebell (Lance Gardner)
Director Carey Perloff, armed with a stellar theatrical pedigree, breathes life into this dense drama, bringing Marin Theatre’s Artistic Director, Mr. Gardner, back to the stage after a five-year hiatus. A brilliant move—Gardner’s magnetic presence propels the slow-moving narrative, his Trebell radiating conviction and charisma.
Wedgecroft (Jomar Tagatac), Lord Horsham (Daniel Cantor), Charles Cantelupe (Anthony Fusco)
He’s well-matched by veteran Liz Sklar as Amy, his married target d’amour. Like two wary fighters in a ring, their flirtation is a chess match of wit and wariness, culminating in Trebell’s glib promise as they slink off into the moonlight: “I leave everything I touch as I have found it.”
Russell Blackborough (Mike Ryan), Lord Horsham (Daniel Cantor), Justin O'Connell
(Joseph O'Malley), Henry Trebell (Lance Gardner), Charles Cantelupe (Anthony Fusco)
While the play’s measured Edwardian pacing requires patience, its incisive dialogue rewards the effort. Maggie Whittaker’s period-perfect costumes and Christine Adaire’s dialect coaching enhance the immersion, while Arnel Sancianco’s clever set design opens with an opulent chandelier-lit stage that opens to an spare angled drawing room—dramatically lit by Kate Boyd—a battlefield for political machinations.
Russell Blackborough (Mike Ryan), Justin O'Connell (Joseph O'Malley), Henry Trebell
(Lance Gardner), Lord Horsham (Daniel Cantor), and Charles Cantelupe (Anthony Fusco)
As power brokers, all male of course, debate Trebell’s scandalous reputation and electability, their cigar-smoke-worthy arguments, laced with cringey misogyny, are indeed cynical and their motivations many. The male chauvinism and backroom strategizing feel unnervingly familiar, as political protocols and abortion swirl in the mix. Who must they trash to achieve their goals? Their deliberations drag—until Trebell arrives, his brash assurances, a true politician’s gift, ring with Gardner’s sonorous Richard Burton-esque authority (sans the Welsh lilt). We see how politics is a ruthless game—Trebell’s idealism will prove his undoing.
Russell Blackborough (Mike Ryan), Charles Cantalupe (Anthony Fusco),
and Lord Horsham (Daniel Cantor)
Several pithy nuggets do keep interest in lieu of any action, once you become accustomed to the 1906 British dialog, of course. That said, I found myself ambivalent about the script. While the dialogue occasionally dazzles, the play’s heavy-handed male chauvinism and stagnating plot left me underwhelmed. The political back-and-forths felt repetitive, and the lack of meaningful evolution in the characters made it hard to fully invest.
Henry Trebell (Lance Gardner) and his sister Frances Trebell (Leontyne Mbele-Mbong)
The ensemble navigates the fallout with restrained intensity, Joseph O’Malley particularly compelling as Amy’s husband. In the end, ambition, morality, and reputation are casualties of the system as friends and political cronies alike are drawn into a web of manipulation with dire results—a true waste.
photos by Chris Hardy
Waste
Marin Theatre, 397 Miller Avenue in Mill Valley
Wed-Fri at 7:30; Sat at 2 & 7:30; Sun at 2; Tues at 1 (Feb 27)
ends on March 2, 2025
for tickets ($30-$85), call 415.388.5208 or visit Marin Theatre
