by Christopher Soden of John Garcia's The Column

Evening Star Rising is genuinely moving and expressed with warmth and precision.

ArtCentre Theatre

Cast of Evening Star Rising

Lon Rogers' Evening Star Rising (playing at the ArtCentre Theatre in Plano through February 28) is a carefully constructed, intelligent drama concerning the inhumanity of the death penalty, the penal system and mankind in general. There's a saying that goes something like, "A society's values are reflected in the treatment of its prisoners," and Evening Star Rising certainly advances this sobering truth. It's easy to see which prison systems are predicated on the idea of retaliation and which are dedicated to rehabilitation.

I don't think it's an accident that the young man convicted of murder in Evening Star, Kevin Landis, is incarcerated in Texas. While some states make a point of giving those on death row every possible appeal, in Texas they can't seem to wait to ready the needle. Even in light of the DNA technology that is proving over and again the grotesque fallibility (and gullibility) of a "jury of one's peers."

Rogers is meticulous in weaving this story of how a beautiful grad student falls in love with a convict, who is facing execution, and subsequently tries to save his life. The possibility of Landis' innocence is also raised, but of course, the wheels of justice often turn slowly, and posthumous exoneration is cold comfort.

Laura Enders is a psychology major working on her doctorate, and investigating the case of Kevin Landis, a twenty year old prisoner marking time on death row. She wishes to develop a theory on the matrix of the criminal mind, and so arranges to interview Kevin, who is only too glad for the company. She starts by having conversations with Richard, Kevin's roommate, and Jennifer, his girlfriend. All the evidence against Kevin is circumstantial. He explodes when a friend of his who waits tables at a gay bar kisses him extravagantly, for the entire world to see. Later, the friend is found dead in the alley, and Kevin, who finds the body, is the first logical suspect.

As she continues to meet Kevin, their feelings for one another escalate, and before you know it, they are in love. As Evening Star Rising progresses, she must contend with Kevin's priest, her college professor, and her fiancé, Darren.

Evening Star Rising has more than one surprise waiting in the wings. There are no outbursts, no emotional eruptions to exploit our feelings. The situation is so charged, so fraught with rage and anxiety, that Rogers does his best to keep everything pointed, modulated and introspective. Anything less would turn this play into a melodrama, and hardly worthy of such a vital issue. By taking a relationship in which detachment is admittedly a defensible strategy, and placing it in contrast to Kevin's excruciating ordeal, it exposes the cruelty of indifference. It makes us wonder, if certainty isn't essential to a guilty verdict, how pervasive is apathy all along the line? How many judges and jurors and cops have forfeited their humanity for the sake of expediency and a good night's sleep?

Evening Star Rising is genuinely moving and expressed with warmth and precision. If there are any problems with it at all, they are easy to understand, in light of the perils inherent in such a project. The attempt to avoid mawkishness may have made the show a bit too cerebral. I got the distinct impression that the plot was shaped to the message (though Evening Star Rising never draws conclusions for us) which made some of the character's choices seem a bit implausible.

These are trivial considerations however. It's so rare to find a cogent, spiritual, emotionally evolved piece of theater that respects us enough to persuade without grabbing us by the shirt collar and howling like a hound dog. It has the presence of mind to ask us to wait a minute, slow down, and think about what's happening. It has the patience to present its case without urgency or the sort of histrionics that cheapen an otherwise valuable story. It has the courage to look at a form of punishment for which there can be no restitution, if it's meted out in error, and ask, "What if?"

Evening Star Rising is fortunate to have a gifted and avid cast. Especially noteworthy are Nancy Lamb, as Laura's teacher and mentor, Dr. Sylvia Carlyle, Jacques Buckingham as Darren Moore, Laura's boyfriend, Krishna Smitha, as Laura Enders, the psych student whose "better judgment" succumbs to a wiser heart, and Colter O'Ryan Smith as Kevin Landis, the solemn and genuine inmate, pulled from college before he's barely had a chance to find joy in the world. Scene Designer Jamey Jamison has managed a daunting and impressive task, creating a set with four different locations, on two levels. None of it feels cramped, and the day room where Laura and Kevin connect is truly enervating and chilling.

Content partner - John Garcia's The Column