A classic courtroom drama navigates the gray areas of power and honor in the latest production from Community Players.
Aaron Sorkin’s thrilling courtroom drama, “A Few Good Men,” depicts what appears to be a cut-and-dried court martial—until military lawyers uncover a high-level conspiracy. The show had a successful run on Broadway in 1989, then was adapted for film in 1992. The play opens May 3 and runs through May 12.
Jeff Ready is the director of the show. A longtime courtroom drama fan—he never missed “L.A.Law”—Ready said he was pleased to chosen to direct “A Few Good Men,” which navigates through secrets, power and corruption.
In the current political climate, you hear the left and right wings screaming the loudest. There is a whole neutral gray area in life. And what I think is great about this show is that it exposes that.
“Instead a black and white, there is a lot of gray in this play, especially for those who are serving overseas on bases that are under potential for fire. It’s a different lifestyle than stateside. So, we tried to concentrate on that more as opposed to the corruption of power. What I tried to concentrate on was an individual corruption.”
Traditionally, “A Few Good Men” is an all-male cast, except for a single female character. Ready decided to broaden that out a bit with gender-neutral casting.
“In the modern military, there are females who are stationed overseas. They are more frontline. So, we are true to the military as it currently exists.”
There’s lessons in power to take away from “A Few Good Men,” said Ready.
“In the current political climate, you hear the left and right wings screaming the loudest. There’s a whole neutral gray area in life. Not just in power struggles, but in politics and religion and any interactions with human beings, there’s always gray. And that’s what I think is great about this show is that it exposes that, not just in the main plot, but in the subplots, too.”
Audiences can expect an examination of honor, as well.
“There’s a line in the show that’s become our unofficial motto here,” Ready said. “It’s ‘you don’t need a badge on your shoulder to have honor.’ Having studied the script as many times as I have, I definitely feel that there’s different levels of honor. You can be honorable in one way and completely dishonorable and sleezy in another way. Again, going back to that gray area.”
There’s some salty language and mature themes in “A Few Good Men.” So, consider this show "R" rated.
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