Oliver Rotunno, Marshall Dunn and Alison Cameron Gray (Photo courtesy of The Collective Troupe)
Reviewed by Asa Fris
The Collective Troupe at Thymele Arts
Thru September 13
Morgan Darlan (Photo courtesy of The Collective Troupe)
Aktion T4 is the title of a euthansia program conceived by the Third Reich in 1939. T4 refers to the street Tiergartenstraße 4, a wealthy neighborhood in Berlin and the location of one of six euthanasia chambers. Following direct authorization from Hitler, these ‘euthansia centers’ began to execute anyone doctors deemed physically or mentally unfit for society. The Third Reich’s primary targets were folks who were already institutionalized, and the program (which was officially shut down, but continued to operate in secret through the end of the war) was responsible for the murder of over 250,000 individuals.
It was the first targeted mass homicide carried out by the Nazi regime. Notably, the eugenics movement in Germany was directly inspired by policies that were being practiced and promoted in other countries, specifically including the United States.
Many of the personnel of Aktion T4 would later go on to work at or run death camps, including Treblinka. Some, believing eugenics to be scientifically sound, would continue to advocate for the slaughter of ‘deviant’ individuals, even long after the denazification of Germany.
Noting the direct connection between the Nazi program and practices derived from eugenics in the U.S., and given the current trajectory of our government, writers Daniel Garcia and A.M. Sannazzaro deliver an apt warning: defend the rights of underprivileged groups, because they are also your own.
Garcia and Sannazzaro center their story around Karl (Oliver Rotunno), a 17 year old boy with polio. He’s from a respectable family, and has managed to walk around needing only a cane until now. But his father Hahn (Garen Petrossian) can’t give him all the treatment he needs and, in compliance with the Nazi regime, brings his son to an institute, believing that he will be safe. Facility lead Kurt (Misha Suvorov) has no intention of helping Karl, however, and slowly manipulates Hahn into believing that Karl doesn’t want to be visited, and eventually that he’s taken his own life.
Lies such as these were common during Aktion T4. They were an easy way to separate a child from their family, then falsify the proper cause of death for records, hiding what was actually occurring at these facilities.
Garcia and Sannazzaro don’t hold back from displaying or talking about all of the horrific occurrences at T4, including rape, execution by freezing, and the inhumane living conditions of the facility. They fill the play with characters caught in gray areas, emphasizing the complicated task of civilians living under violent regimes who must weigh financial and social stability versus morality and empathy.
There’s Olga (a formidable performance by Morgan Darlan), a nurse at the facility who’s also studying to become a nun, and who’s caught between her duty to the state and her faith; Heinz (Marshall Dunn), the head doctor who’s hiding his own ‘deviant’ sexuality; and Helmut (Michael Rashmir), a Catholic priest unsure of when to play the patient card or the action one. Eventually, a dramatic and violent ending (perhaps overly so) makes their options clear: There’s no gray area when lives are at risk.
Garcia and Sannazzaro’s glimpse into Aktion T4 is a warning against swiftly diminishing rights, and their commitment to the story is palpable. As is, however, both the writing and staging are underdeveloped. While there’s certainly a lot of creativity to be found throughout the piece, such as a recurring allusion to chess moves, or constant asides to the audience, these aren’t always cohesive choices, and they often fail to impart clarity or develop their metaphorical allusions with any further depth.
Many scenes (and the show as a whole) are too long — including a thrilling scene featuring Gerda (Alison Cameron Gray, who’s also comedically astute), an inpatient with cerebral palsy. Gerda is nearly executed, and Gray’s performance is harrowing. But the scene carries on past its thrilling and shocking apex, and becomes laborious to follow. There are other concerns: Karl is too free to speak his mind in front of powerful figures, and the loud sound effects throughout the show are more distracting than anything.
Hopefully Aktion T4 may see further development, because in many ways it is not only successful but moving — namely Karl’s romantic relationship with Gerda, which culminates in a scene where she gives him a blanket she’s made out of deceased patient’s hair, so that it might keep them both warm during the cold night, a token of gratitude to honor her first real experience of love.
The Collective Troupe, Thymele Arts, Santa Monica Blvd., East Hollywood. Wed.-Thurs/, 7:30 pm, Sun., 2 pm; thru Sept. 13. https://ticketscandy.com/e/aktion-t4-19914 Runtime: approximately two hours and 15 minutes, with an intermission
