Brotherly Love: 'Vincent' at D.C. Arts Center

| Print Post This | Like (0) | Comments (0)

WITH THEIR DAZZLING stars and radiant sunflowers, Vincent van Gogh's paintings can lighten up the most depressing of rooms. But, sadly, the artist's life itself was marked by darkness. "Vincent" — playing through March 28 at the D.C. Arts Center — implores audiences to ponder this contrast as it questions the meaning behind van Gogh's work, the relationship between insanity and creative genius, and the demands that society makes on an artist.

The moving and meditative play was written by "Star Trek" alum Leonard Nimoy (a man who's dealt with his own artistic identity issues) and is based on both an earlier Phillip Stevens show ("Van Gogh") and hundreds of letters exchanged between the illustrious painter and his brother, Theo.

The story opens one week after Vincent's funeral, and Theo (B. Stanley) is finally ready to say a few words about his brother. As he recounts the ups and many downs of Vincent's life (failed love affairs, self-mutilation, mental illness, etc.), he forces the audience to see the artist not through the eyes of critics who dismissed him as insane, but through those of a family member who loved, supported and fiercely defended his blood.

Stanley gives a wise, emotional performance, and slides of van Gogh's work flashing in the background paint moods in a way the script alone cannot.

» D.C. Arts Center, 2438 18th St. NW; through March 28, $15-$20; 202-462-7833. (Woodley Park)

Written by Express contributor Jenny Mayo
Photo courtesy DCAC