In an isolated villa on the coast of Italy, a most unusual story is developing. Fifty sisters have fled their native Greece to escape marriage to 50 American brothers. All they want, the sisterly leaders tell the perplexed residents of the villa, is safety. But their suitors quickly follow. That's the set up to Charles Mee's Big Love, which recently had an athletic and entertaining production at the Humana Festival of New American Plays. Big Love -- from an opening nude scene to an end with bodies strewn on the stage -- pushes plenty of buttons, dealing with gender, relationships, marriage and sex. Big Love also has unexpected twists along the way, from several well-timed musical numbers to a pair of athletic scenes -- one for the women, one for the men -- where all of their worries and frustrations are exorcised in five minutes of movement and shouting.
The show's best moment comes from Bella (Lauren Klein), the elderly matriarch. As she describes each of her 14 sons, her feelings toward them are symbolized in two ways: either as a tomato carefully placed on the edge of a bathtub, or a tomato smashed to the ground. Maybe the most striking image is the set; the floor and walls are painted like the sky, helping to make the show appear bigger than the small space it is presented in.
