'SPACE' Soars as a Powerful Tribute to Women Astronauts and Their Earthbound Battles
SPACE, a Brit d'Arbeloff Women in Science and The Catalyst Collaborative at MIT production. Central Square Theater, Cambridge, through February 23. 617-576-9278.
John Lennon imagined a world with no borders. The very diverse women in L M Feldman and Larissa Lury's both informative and pioneering play "SPACE"—now in an exuberant world premiere at Central Square Theater—imagine a future ''different world'' in which there are no human barriers for female scientists and would-be astronauts as well as women themselves. Co-creator Lury is attentively directing a talented ensemble as diverse as the actual women they portray. The result—presented by Brit d'Arbeloff and celebrating the 20th anniversary of Catalyst Collaborative@MIT-- is a vital examination of the struggle of 14 gifted women—some still living—against stereotypes and sexism in the pursuit of inclusion in America's exploration of space.
In a play that "moves across time and space," Feldman has set Movement One (Act One) mostly in the early 1960s—when President John Fitzgerald Kennedy spoke of Americans reaching the moon—and Movement Two (Act Two) mostly in the early 2020s. Scenic Designer Qingan Zhang has cleverly turned the Central Square Theater stage floor into a veritable surreal space where the women in question effectively explore with their minds and movement as they seek to transcend the obstacles presented by testing officials, institutional directors, Congressional committees and NASA itself. Stretching from pioneering pilots like Amelia Earhart to celebrated astronauts like Sally Ride, "SPACE" stretches from 1920 to 2020. At the same time, Feldman's stirring effort speaks of a Movement Three—set in 2112—that invites future women explorers to find total parity with their male counterparts in the full investigation of the terra nova and terra incognita that is space itself.
Make no mistake. No didactic exercise, Feldman's play contains not only convincing evidence about the struggles of women scientists and explorers but also real drama—sometimes combined with irony and even unexpected humor. Aside from vivid information about all of the women, there is a strikingly detailed depiction of the astronaut screening tests undergone by women in the program known as Mercury 13—participants inexcusably denied access to the NASA space program in 1962. Here special credit goes to movement director Lindsay Torrey, who effectively configured various actresses to evoke the screening tests unreasonably demanded of the women in question. Going forward, there is a telling reference to budget cuts and layoffs.
Along the way, a strong and dramatically compelling conflict involves tenacious record breaker (for speed and distance, among others) Jackie Cochran (who would provide some financial support) and less self-assured but no less expert Gealdyn Cobb (vulnerable as a lesbian in very intolerant times). Catharine K. Slusar captures Cochran's authority as well as her self-serving statements that would alienate fellow explorers. MK Tuomanen brings touching nuance to Cobb and exhilaration to Ride. Kaili Y. Turner brings captivating wonder and enthusiasm to the role of Jane Hart, a savvy senator's wife. Hui Ying Wen is touching as Cobb's journalist lover Ivy Rieker and spirited as first Chinese-American pilot Hazel Ying Lee—never given a military funeral despite her World War II service. Valencia Proctor catches pioneering Bessie Coleman's feistiness and Irene Leverton's passion. Monica Risi and Mitra Sharif are equally persuasive as are all of the seven actresses in moving between two roles. Barlow Adamson ranges smartly between the male roles-particularly JFK and very demanding administrator Randolph Lovelace.
A theater side room features photographs and informative bios of the actual women. "SPACE" is much more than a validation of these female pioneers. The Brit d'Arbeloff production should serve as an artful encouragement to aspiring women and a timely challenge to all theatergoers at a time when science and technology are threatened by purveyors of ignorance.