Perhaps I was sundowning, but The Lonny Chapman Group Rep Theatre’s production of Gerald Sibleyra’s Heroes bore striking resemblance to Beckett’s Waiting for Godot. Heroes, for example, centers on cantankerous characters whose playful disdain for one another is only surpassed by their dislike of being alone. Dialogue consists of circuitously constructed conversations and mundane subject matter. Sibleyra has even managed to include a clowning bit involving rope and lining up like Master and work horse. However, Heroes,

adeptly translated to English by Tom Stoppard, brings a considerably larger amount of humor and accessibility to the subject of the futility of existence.

The play centers around three WWI veterans who pass their autumn days plotting conquests from the veranda of the military hospital they live in. Opening the play with a hilariously-delivered speech about his Least Favorite Month, Larry Eisenberg’s feisty and “tolerably deranged” Gustave sets the pace for the quick-tongued but slow-moving action that ensues (they are seniors, afterall). Opposite Gustave is the gentle-hearted, gammy-legged Henri, warmly brought to life by Klair Bybee. Rounding out the cast is Lloyd Pedersen’s decidedly indecisive Philippe, a doe-eyed peace keeper prone to passing out mid-sentence on account of shrapnel still lodged in his head. The ornery and motley trio seem content to pass their days gossiping about Sister Madelaine, the nun who cares for the residents, or watching the over sized dog statue resting patiently on their terrace, wondering if it has moved.

If this all sounds much too cheery to be considered existential, rest assured the play cautiously dips into the more dark and dismal facets of second childhood. Gustave suffers from suffocating social anxiety that has kept him inside the hospital grounds for more than three years. A fellow resident commits suicide the morning after his 85th birthday. Plans to escape the grounds for an afternoon amongst the poplars are greatly complicated by physical infirmity. Indeed, everything is more complicated for these gentlemen, but it doesn’t stop them from dreaming of fortifying their terrace with the sandbags and hand grenades, or describing the neighboring school teacher in youthfully crude detail. Thus the audience is delightfully engaged by the characters peculiarities, heartbroken by their honestly, and unavoidably revisiting their own private fears regarding aging.

The production would have been more dramatically fulfilling had the somber moments been explored more thoroughly, although I feel that note belongs more to the director and scenic designer than any of the players. Trefoni Michael Rizzi’s glaring white backdrop and matching white window and doorframes, while no doubt constructed to allow the other two plays in the Rep-A-Trois an effortless change-over, was an overly-pristine distraction that negated any nuanced lighting design. Scene changes were long, and even when timidly filled with non-scripted action, dragged the energy down. The play’s closing moment, a beautiful reference to the plight of migratory birds, left the actors almost comically standing in formation, their arms lifted noncommitally at their sides. While Director Gregg T. Daniel’s credits attest to his artistry, I’m curious as to the reasoning behind his choice, and annoyed with his distrust of Stoppard’s language. On both scenic and directing fronts, even barer simplicity would have been sufficient.

Liz Nankin’s costume design was spot on. Each character had distinctive detailing, such as suspenders, an offset beret, or scuffed up shoes, that was evocative of vintage France without resembling caricature. I’m unsure if it was the expedience of the costume changes or an active choice by the performers to leave certain buttons unhinged and shirttails askew, but the inclusion of such detail was entirely (and humorously) appropriate. Combined with Bybee’s believable limp, Pedersen’s wonderfully articulated fainting spells, and Eisenberg’s appropriately contrasting physical dexterity, I felt I really was visiting with a charming group of gentlemen, befuddled and well past their prime.

Rather than asking, “What are we waiting for?”, the play questions how the characters will arrive at the distant horizon. When all logical plans to arrive at the poplars on the hill fail, when autumn creeps into winter, will they reach their endgame dignity intact? While the wind may not blow on their cherished terrace, the Group Rep certainly has breathed a a refreshing life into a charismatic and deserving piece of theatre.

Heroes was written by Gerard Sibleyras, adapted by Tom Stoppard

Winner of the 2006 Olivier Award for Best New Comedy

Heroes is running in Rotating Rep at The Lonny Chapman Theatre through November 7th:

Thursday, 9/17E - 8:00 pm Opening
Sunday, 9/20M - 3:00 pm
Saturday, 9/26M - 3:00 pm
Sunday, 9/27E - 7:00 pm
Saturday, 10/3E - 8:00 pm
Friday, 10/9E - 8:00 pm
Sunday, 10/11M - 3:00 pm
Saturday, 10/17M - 3:00 pm
Sunday, 10/18E - 7:00 pm
Saturday, 10/24E 8:00 pm
Friday, 10/30E - 8:00 pm
Sunday, 11/1M - 3:00 pm
Saturday, 11/7M - 3:00 pm Final Performance

The Lonny Chapman Theatre (GRT) located at 10900 Burbank Blvd, North Hollywood 91601

Tickets are $22 and available 818 700-4878 or online at www.thegrouprep.com