Intrigue of ‘The Revolutionists’ a creative treat on Elgin stage

For 26 years, Sean Patrick Hargadon has been the artistic director of Janus Theatre Company in Elgin; he is proud of the troupe’s longevity and of “finding their way forward.”

Playwright Lauren Gunderson’s irreverent comedy “The Revolutionists” is part of Janus’ 26th anniversary “Call to Adventure” season, whose mission is to feature prominent figures and stories from the past brought to life for today’s audiences and reflecting on our current time. Under Hargadon’s superb direction, “The Revolutionists” does that and is well staged, well paced and well cast.

Gunderson is billed as the “most produced playwright in America you’ve probably never heard of.” Janus Theatre Company has produced other of her works, most notably “Silent Sky” and “The Half-Life of Marie Curie,” supporting Janus’ strong focus on producing stories about women and featuring women.

Hargadon is an astute and gifted director; he once again is assisted by Tara Morrison. The costumes by Tiffany Jasinski are beautifully character appropriate and deliver. (Jasinski also portrays Charlotte Corday in the play.) Hargadon is responsible for the set, sound and light designs.

At times brutal, the two-act comedy encompasses feminism, activism and how we change the world. We are fortunate that Hargadon cast four extremely talented actresses, each capable of precision, timing and the warmth and camaraderie needed with each other onstage. The four are a remarkable quartet of energy, complexity, vulnerability and comedy. And Gunderson’s rapid-fire barbs and quick retorts never fail, as the four try to fight the 1793 extremist insanity in Paris as “a sisterhood of heroes.”

Most of the action takes place in playwright Olympe de Gouges’ house. The other three characters have come to her in search of words – words to be remembered by, words to inspire rebellion. As portrayed by a brilliant and luminous Jennifer Reeves Wilson, we encounter a Gouges who is in love with words and manifests strong courage, yet is also insecure and dreaming of the guillotine every night while she fights for women’s equality. The last female playwright in Paris, Gouges takes the fatal step of speaking before the male-dominated National Assembly, and Reeves Wilson’s depiction of the confusion and horror of Gouges’ reception and about the idea of equality are marvelously conveyed. “We’re all in a play that someone else is writing.”

Amber Cartwright is a wondrous Marianne Angelle, the rebel, spy and activist freedom fighter from Saint-Domingue (now Haiti; France officially freed enslaved people in Saint-Domingue in August 1793.) Cartwright exudes steely resolve and sassiness, and shares an unshakable best-friend chemistry with Reeves Wilson’s Gouges onstage; she is inspiring. Cartwright is also the mistress of physical expression.

Tiffany Jasinski portrays young, real-life assassin Charlotte Corday, who murdered extremist Jean-Paul Marat. Corday blamed Marat for fostering the brutality of the Reign of Terror; the entire city of Paris is afraid of him. Jasinski is a likable, lovable and fresh actress and very powerful in her delivered belief: “I killed a man to save the republic.”

Of course, where would the Reign of Terror be without the ill-fated Queen Marie Antoinette? Heidi Swarthout is an exquisitely hilarious, powdered and glittered royal; she’s delightfully over the top at times, out of touch and flaky and a spoiled aristocrat, but soon Swarthout shows us a mother, wife and woman whose ideas weren’t valued. Swarthout is sublime.

I’m not quite certain what exactly to call “The Revolutionists” – perhaps a dramedy is better? Whatever you label it, playwright Gunderson has found the right formula again, and Janus Theatre has produced another play to be proud of. With the troupe’s more than 100 productions presented locally, regionally, nationally and internationally in everything from basements to parks to theater spaces, I can’t wait for Janus’ 27th season!

• Regina Belt-Daniels continues to have a hands-on approach to theater as a working director and sometimes actress. She has done more than 40 productions in the area for RCLPC, TownSquare Players, WMTC, McHenry County College’s Black Box Theatre, Elgin Theatre Company, Independent Players and Raue Center For The Arts. When not traveling with her husband, she can be found in an audience somewhere.

IF YOU GO

• WHAT: Janus Theatre Company’s “The Revolutionists”

• WHERE: Elgin Art Showcase, 164 Division St., eighth floor, Elgin

• WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 18; 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 19 and 20

• COST: $22

• INFORMATION: Eventbrite at tinyurl.com/bdhxn458