Break the Whip goes back in American history to the founding of the first permanent English settlement at Jamestown, Virginia in 1607. Inspired by Howard Zinn's "People's History of the United States," the play, written and directed by Tim Robbins but developed by the Actors' Gang company over a year-long period of improvisation and experimentation, exposes the poisoned roots of the so-called New World.
America may have opted, 170 years later, to revolt against British rule and become a democracy, but it was -- and still is -- a deeply flawed democracy, a poisoned democracy.
Three groups are pitted against each other in Break the Whip: the snobby Brits and the white indentured servants they have brought with them from England; the indigenous population, the Paspahegh tribe; and the Angolan slaves brought to Jamestown against their will. Class, primitivism and racism are the themes explored by Robbins & Co., in a style that leans heavily on commedia dell'arte, shadow puppetry, snatches of song and dance.
Three onstage musicians play a score written by David Robbins; the text is packed with native Indian and African dialogue (with English supertitles); the 23-strong ensemble changes costumes in full view of the audience. There are battles, hangings, floggings and internecine arguments. Most characters wear masks and address the audience directly.
It's all very experimental, Brechtian, epic. Yet thanks to
the skill and inventiveness of the actors; and to Robbins' tightly choreographed direction; and to the intense love story between an African slave and a rebellious Brit, the long, sprawling, tumultuous text manages to work and hold together over a long haul.
