Since opening its doors in 1999, the Chance Theater in Anaheim Hills
has evolved into a small dynamo of the Orange County theater scene,
racking up nominations and awards in multiple categories. This weekend
Chance presents the Southern California premiere of
Reborning — a thriller tackling the ongoing challenge of living with emotional pain.
Managing director Casey Long wears two hats with this production,
serving in his administrative capacity as well as a member of the
three-actor cast.
“Every community has that big regional theater,” Long says. “But then
you have the smaller theater, like us, that does the more contemporary
works.”
The Chance has produced many world premieres and West Coast premieres during its 14 years.
Reborning
is a southern California premiere, the second production of the play
following its 2011 premiere at San Francisco Playhouse. It was written
by Zayd Dohrn, a Chicago playwright and Chance’s 2012 resident
playwright. Chance artistic director Oanh Nguyen is staging it.
The phenomenon depicted in the play and its title was first
documented in the early 1990s, when dolls of babies were created to be
as lifelike as possible in physical appearance, weight and even smell.
These realistic creations (called “reborn dolls”) became increasingly
popular. The more life-like their features, the more valuable they were
to collectors.
Clubs, societies and experts sprouted in the reborn doll field. The
process of creating these dolls is called “reborning,” with the artists
who create the dolls referred to as “reborners.”
Using dolls to manage the valleys
But what started as artistic excellence in verisimilitude evolved
into an emotional tool for those who had lost babies or experienced
other forms of trauma. These psychological uses for the dolls are the
fodder from which the play emerges.
“It’s a script that’s so new and tackling something so new,” Long
notes. “Some of these people have lost children, of course. This only
re-creates a small fraction of what the trend is about, but it is
definitely a part of this world.”
The three actors in
Reborning undertake a story that covers
everything from abusive upbringing to how individuals eventually cope
with that abuse through their adult relationships. Long believes that
Reborning goes the distance with its content. For this reason, it is not recommended for younger audiences.
“The show gradually devolves into this real psychological head trip,”
Long says. “You do start questioning: Who is this woman? What are her
true motives? And what’s going to become of her?”
With two of the characters portraying sculptors of different kinds of
realistic dolls, there is plenty of room for debate and dissent when it
comes to the buttons pushed by the narrative. Long believes this “meat”
of the story is what takes it beyond the psychological thriller and
into something more philosophical regarding human need.
“It’s one of those shows when I first read it, I liked it,” Long
says. “But it wasn’t until the rehearsal process when I realized how it
works on so many levels. It’s much more universal than you would think.”
In an America where people expose their most intimate problems on
television talk shows and express themselves candidly through social
media, the roadmap
Reborning circles around questions the nature of trauma and what constitutes “normal” when it comes to surviving tragic events.
The production team maintained close contact with playwright Dohrn
throughout the rehearsal process, asking questions about the script and
seeking clarification on the practice of reborning. The play itself
creates conversations between characters about the place of art within
society and its appropriateness as a tool, particularly when used in
such an emotionally charged way as that of a dead or unborn child.
“We even have conversations in the play about the actual craft of
sculpture,” Long says. “That and dealing with loss, trying so hard to
get the [reborn] baby to take the place of what was lost. How do we then
relate to it emotionally when we actually created it?”
Finding terrific new plays is half the battle
“We’re an ensemble,” Long reflects, discussing script selection at
the Chance. “So we all try to keep our eyes peeled on the national
theater scene. We’re always looking.”
But the Chance is not interested only in the latest hot play making
the rounds of the usual regional theaters or the Broadway scene. It also
takes note of playwrights themselves, particularly new voices emerging
on a national scale.
Producing a segment of a playwright’s body of work rather than just
one offering at a time is something the Chance has used in its “On the
Radar” program, which produces staged readings of two other works
alongside a mainstage production by the same playwright.
Reborning will be paired with Dohm’s additional plays
Magic Forest Farm and
The Origin Story of Mister Clean.
Long believes this helps the Chance engage more audiences in the
creative process, via post-show and open forum discussions. For
Reborning,
with a week of previews already completed, the audiences are reflecting
back to the artists the diversity of the play’s themes.
“Each audience so far has focused on completely different things,”
Long states. “It was fascinating. One talked about characters, another
abuse, and another focused entirely on the actual dolls we used in the
show.”
A local reborning artist made all the reborning props for the play,
providing an added level of authenticity. Long feels the production also
benefits from the tight-knit group of Chance mainstays contributing to
the creative process.
“It’s an all-ensemble cast and we are all resident artists who
already know each other,” Long says. “So there’s no trying to figure out
how the dynamic works with outside people. It’s a lot more flexible and
fluid that way. It becomes really exciting and visceral in the
rehearsal process.”
While purchasing a perfectly crafted baby doll to replace the real
thing may seem like consumerism run amok, arguments exist for practical
facets of the reborn dolls. In some instances, women who cannot have
children use the dolls in order to “feel like a mom” while others cope
with painful childhood trauma from abandonment or other forms of abuse
by caring for the dolls. While some of this therapy may seem like a
placebo for reality, anecdotal evidence supports it, and entire websites
and support groups are dedicated to these therapeutic uses.
Reborn dolls also raise a deeper question — do these dolls make us
more capable with our feelings or are we simply more detached because of
them? Is reliance on such a product to feel better about a child being
dead truly healthy or a hindrance? Or, as Long reflects on these ideas,
do all these things simply point to the same universal theme embraced by
so many dramatists—aren’t all humans always in need of creating
meaningful connections?
“All three of these characters are trying to make that connection
with somebody,” Long reflects. “They so badly need that human contact.
How do you make that happen in this day and age? [Reborn dolls] could
very well fill that gap for someone.”
The reborning of Chance itself?
The Chance’s current venue in Anaheim Hills, a cozy 49-seat house,
isn’t a permanent home for the ensemble. But Long hopes this will soon
change for the company.
We are ready for a permanent home,” Long states. “And we’re also
looking forward to becoming more of a mid-size theater with 150 to 200
seats. It’s very exciting taking that next step.”
As the planning stages of a capital campaign begin, the Chance plans
to keep moving toward a permanent home that allows for expanded
programming while maintaining the intimacy that has allowed the freedom
to pursue challenging plays from lesser-known voices.
Reborning, Chance Theater, 5552 East La Palma
Avenue, Anaheim Hills. Opens Saturday. Plays Thu–Sat 8 pm; Sat 3 pm; Sun
2 pm. Through May 20. Tickets $35. 714-777-3033. www.chancetheater.com.
***All Reborning production photos by Doug Catiller, True Image Studio
