Richard Jay Simon seems to have a talent for mounting plays at his Mosaic Theater that demand a lot of actors and then of casting and directing actors and actresses that can do the job. He's done that again with The Elephant Man. Antonio Amadeo is exquisite as the title character, a man whose gross deformities, somehow affecting all of his body save his left arm and his mental and artistic acuity, made him a freak-show attraction and a medical curiosity - a higher class of freak show, some might conclude - in Victorian England.
The outline of the story is widely known, thanks to this play that made a big impression almost three decades ago and the film of the same name that followed that provided its own take on the tale. John - in real life Joseph - Merrick is rescued from a life of degradation by 31-year-old anatomy professor and physician-on-the-rise Frederick Treves (Christian Rockwell) and London Hospital, run by Carr Gomm (Johnpaul Moccia), who lets Merrick make a hospital room his home - a situation that brings civility and celebrity to Merrick and welcome donations to the hospital.
Simon follows the production conventions of Bernard Pomerance's 1977 play. Merrick is performed by a lithe young man who wears a diaper and contorts his body to suggest the deformities as they are described to the audience accompanied by photographs of the real Merrick. A cast of seven handles the 20 roles, all but Amadeo playing multiple parts. A cellist plays incidental music, mostly between scenes. But Simon's direction eschews the exclamation points of some "I Am Not An Animal! I Am A Man!" tellings. This helps the ensemble piece avoid what might have become soap-opera moments, but it also mutes ideas at war in the play: science and faith, image and authenticity, the arbitrariness of good looks and bad health. Those don't jump out as they might.
Similarly, Patti Gardner (as the actress Mrs. Kimbal) avoids the over-the-top staginess of a vapid celebrity to such an extent that she doesn't get the laugh or two she should early on. It takes a few beats for the audience to catch up to this sly and naturalistic reading. Rockwell's Treves arcs from a scientist comfortable in an age of science to one riven with doubt. The cast is solid throughout, and costumes seem right for the 1884-1890 period, as does lighting that invokes flickering flames.
The set reflects the decision to go subtle, and not necessarily to good effect. The hospital room is a bluish gray. At the start of second act the bed is downstage, its three plump pillows stacked and covered in white - making them prominent, as indeed they will be to the action. So it's a curious decision to have the church model Merrick has been working on since the first act rendered the color of slate; it doesn't contrast with the palette of Merricks' hospital room - either as a hue or, more importantly, as a metaphor.
