The Haunting Vision of Equus:

Imagine being obsessed with horses to the extent that Alan Strang is. To the extent that they control your physical, mental, emotional, sexual and spiritual life.

Now imagine being brought up by parents even more confused; one is obsessed with atheist fiction and the other, with the Bible. One parent forbids you to watch television because it takes away "your intelligence and your concentration," and the other lets you sneak out of the house in the afternoon to watch television at a friend's house.

In Equus, which played at the Loeb Experimental Theater last weekend, Alan Strang (Benjamin Hewitt) faces these disturbing circumstances. Still, family problems and a fetish are not compelling enough reason to blind five horses. Martin Dysart (Donald Britton), a professional psychiatrist, begins with the hope to cure the boy.

Alan is a puzzle. He takes Dysart and the audience into the bizarre world that he shares with Equus, who Alan believes is a deity. In one scene, Alan invokes Equus to ride with him. This nightly ritual is one of the truly magnificent scenes of the play. The revolving stage, drawn by the horses (played with great poise by Kareem Montague, Cecilia Sperling, Meredith Wolf, Keith Barsky and Catherine Zuromskis) enhance Alan's excitement and passion.

The abandon with which director George Reyes depicts the ride captures Alan's true spirit beautifully--wild, free, untamed. "Make us one person," he pleads with Equus.

The play focuses on Alan's spiritual and sexual obsession with Equus. While it leaves Alan confused and alienated, it also allows him to "gallop"--a visual representation of his freedom and complete independence. Martin grows to envy Alan's free spirit because his own life is structured, safe, boring and devoid of any romantic or sexual stimulus. He debates with himself whether he ought to take away the "gallop" from Alan and give him a life his own.

The situation at home does not improve either. The martial problems that the Strangs attempt to hide begin to surface when each approaches the psychiatrist with details of Alan's life, as well as their own. "Ask him about the girl he was with that night," Frank Strang (Blake Lawit) tells Martin.

The girl that Frank refers to is Jill Mason (Elizabeth Price), who attempts to seduce him in the stable where they both work. But, instead of her face, he sees Equus', instead of her skin he feels Equus'. All around the pitch black barn, he can see only Equus, whose anger at Alan's infidelity torments the already distraught boy. "Equus sees, God sees'" he screams, before in a fit of fury, he blinds all five horses with a metal spike. "No more Equus, no more," he screams, above the terrified, blinded horses. This is the revelation that Alan finally makes to Dysart.

Equus' strength lies in excellent direction and skillful acting. George Reyes has interpreted Peter Shaffer's play intelligently and brings vision, sensitivity and realism to the production. The imaginative spotlighting and costumes only enhance the play's impact on the audience.

The highlight, however, is the acting. Carolyn Rendell, who is a contributing writer for The Crimson, shines as Dora Strang. Her imaginative, sensitive portrayal of a character who teeters on the brink of insanity is marvelous and easily the best performance of the play. Benjamin Hewitt and Donald Britton bring strength of their roles as Alan and Dysart. Blake Lawit impresses the audience with his capacity to handle the volatile, frustrated character of Frank Strang. Elizabeth Price brings earnestness, normality, poise and the most strongly felt stage presence to her role as Jill. The horses are memorable as well. Their grace, coordination and poise make the play incredibly effective.

Equus was a treat to watch and easily one of the best theatrical performances at Harvard this semester. One only hopes that more plays like this will take the stage at the Ex.