Shane

By Karen Zacarias

Directed by Blake Robison
Produced by Dallas Theater Center

Audience Rating: PG for some gun violence

Run Time: 90 minutes, no intermission

Accessible Seating: Available

Hearing Devices: Not available

Sensory Friendly Performance: Not available

Production Sound Level: Comfortable Volume

Noises or Visuals to Prepare for: Some gunshot noises

Reviewed by Bradford Reilly

Black history month offers us an opportunity to remember major historical figures that make up the tapestry of our nation. It also grants us a moment to recollect the stories, legends, and myths of peoples long forgotten who have laid the foundation, and prologue to, how our nation is today. Dallas Theater Center’s production of Shane adapted by Karen Zacarias and directed by Blake Robison, provides us 90 minutes to have such a reflection.

Considered among the top western films ever made, the 1953 film based on the 1949 novel by Jack Schaefer takes us to a Wyoming homestead in 1889 owned by the Starrett family. One day, a lone cowboy looking to leave his gun-slinging past behind to become a farmhand comes to the Starrett homestead for work. But, when a rich Rancher by the name of Luke Fletcher wants the 169 acres of land (per homestead!) to expand his cattle empire comes knocking, Shane realizes he cannot peacefully standby and must stand up to the greed and injustice to protect the community and family who brought him in. Greedy rich men taking advantage of poorer families is a trope entrenched in the American mythos and must be reexamined again and again.

Karen Zacarias, however, takes this classic story and adapts it to something fresh and new. In fact, dusting off the past to reexamine the present is a powerful motif throughout the production. We begin through the eyes of an older Bobby Starrett (played by Esteban Vilchez) as he invocates the space: He picks up the dirt, he percussively stamps upon the sacred land tended to by his parents, and he dusts off his hands to begin the story. And so this action is injected throughout the production. Vilchez transitions from his older self to younger self to tell the heroic story of the cowboy Shane. Vilchez brings an endearing sense of child-like wonder to the eight year old, always observing and learning, taking us along his journey to learn what it means to be a man.

When I think of westerns, I think of Barbara Stanwyck. I think of John Wayne. I think of Clint Eastwood. And as westerns have defined Americana for decades, they are but whitewashed versions of historical record. Zacarias expands the construct of the novel (not the movie) Shane, and uses historical record to successfully justify how she retells the story. In her dramaturgical note, she states that one quarter of cowboys in 1889 were black. Another quarter were Mexican. Both demographics reached for a safer place to plant their futures after the Civil and Mexican American Wars—opportunity offered to them by the Homestead Act of 1862. Further, she says, Shane is described in the book as a lean and dark figure. And so, Shane (played by Nathan M Ramsey) is black. Shane is from Louisiana. Shane’s parents were slaves, if he wasn’t a slave himself. These details enrich his character, deeply inform us of a traumatic and violent past he runs away from, and define his sense of justice, right, and wrong.

The Starrett family is Mexican, both parents put through an American education to assimilate into American culture. Joe Starrett (the father, played by Blake Hackler) migrates to the Wyoming territory because he envisions a better future for his child. Spanish, however, is seldom spoken in the household. Marian Starrett (the mother played by Tiffany Solano) desires to honor her heritage. “Wyoming,” she mentions “used to be Mexico. So,” she hoped, “it would feel like home.” Marian weaves Mexican culture in how she rears her child, but still includes things as American as Apple Pie. Hackler and Solano provide warmth and strength to their characters, yet the worry and anxiety to the situation the bullish rancher (played by Bob Hess) thrusts them into was palpable and convincing.

One more piece of history Zacarias weaves into this story is that of forced Native migration. In 1868, the United States Government created the Great Sioux Reservation, designated land where more than the Sioux people inhabit: many more nations forced there, including the Lakota people. Stephanie Lauren Delgado plays Winona Stephens of the Lakota nation, offering a voice for the native experience. Important to the plot, too, as we see parallels of land grabbing: the United States government forcing migration for the country’s economic prosperity; Homesteaders taking the opportunity to create prosperity for themselves; and Ranchers taking advantage of the homesteaders, often murdering them for land. Delgado’s characterization of Winona Stephens is grounded, motherly, and wise, with a keen sense of right and wrong. She also gets one of the most badass moments in the entire production, which I won’t ruin for you here.

Another one of the core themes for Zacarias in adapting Shane was to examine what it meant to be masculine. When we look at a cowboy, a hero, a role model for our children, what do we hope for? Zacarias’ text and Nathan M Ramsey’s characterization marry together to make Shane an excellent role model. Ramsey was masculine in a stoic sense, yet his presence created a sense of vibrancy among the Starrett homestead and the town they live in. Ramsey’s Shane cared for his appearance, he was sure of himself, and an observer. Zacarias’ text creates a comparison as well: When putting the young Bobby to bed, he asks his mother if she’ll read the story of the soldier. She corrects him to say it is a story of a knight. And in that comparison marks the two versions of masculinity we see in the story: Shane is a knight. The bad guys are but soldiers for the rancher. Shane is an agent doing better for his community. The others are mercenaries, agents for greed. The difference lies in purpose.

The myths of American culture echo loudly in this production: The rich taking advantage of people dreaming for a better future. A complicated history in expanding economic interests to secure national and personal prosperity for peoples of all backgrounds. Doing right by a community that has fed you. What masculinity means. What it means to know where you come from. What it means to be truly American. It is a production worth seeing, and examining for yourself to view the past that is prologue to where we are now.

Shane at the Kalita Humphries Theatre runs until February 16. Go see it,and enjoy the show. Tickets can be found at https://dallastheatercenter.org

Curtains up, light the lights,

Bradford Reilly