Steadstyle Chicago
	February 2010 Theatre Review by Alan Bresloff
	A Love Lost Life The Unauthorized Story of Marlon Brando To most actors even today, Marlon Brando was an actor's actor.  As a young man, he changed the way actors worked their craft.  My generation watched him grow and age as an actor and saw the power of the characters he created.  In the new Bio now on stage at The Theatre Building Chicago, "A Love Lost Life - The Unauthorized Story of Marlon Brando" we get a glimpse into what made him what he was and the ups and downs, not of his career, but of his relationships with his parents and as a parent.  The play is written by David Nathie Barnes, who also takes on the role of Brando's son, Christian.  We meet young Marlon (probably the best performance in the show by Michael Perez, who not only looks like the young Brando, but has the mannerisms down pat), as he hits Hollywood. The story is a look at what happened to the man and his family and two other men are also used to play Brando.  Jamie Asch plays Brando from ages 47-67 and Robert Ashkenas, who also is more of a story-teller at age 80, his declining years.  We learn of his parents and why he chose to leave the farm and we are made aware of his family ties (or lack of) with his two children, Christian and Cheyenne (Claudia Di Biccari).  While there are many historical facts to the story, I found the play just a little wordy.  It had been a shorter play that has been expanded to 90 minutes.  Perhaps it should have stayed shorter, or perhaps it needs to be expanded to allow for more of young Brando and his rise to stardom.  It seems that a lot of the story is about Brando's kids and how mixed up they were and of course the shooting of Cheyenne's boyfriend by Christian, which does not take place as it really did). The set by Shaun Renfro is unique for the small space with levels but they need to nail down some loose boards that created noise as actors entered and exited the center area.  Susan Fielder's direction worked under the conditions, and again, fix those boards and the show will move far better.  Stephen Sorenson's lighting was a little darker than I would have expected in some of the less dark scenes and the costumes by Claire Paolini seems to fit the times.  The other cast members, Audra Yokley as Marilyn Monroe (one of young Brando's conquests) and Beau Forbes as James Dean had only once scene to set the tone of the importance of the star quality that Brando had and Mike Tepeli did an admirable job as Jay Kanter, Brando's early agent. The story is not all that it could be.  I had hoped for a lot more, as Brando was indeed an icon in the industry.  While it centered upon his loneliness and his inability to find happiness, despite having the world worship and adore him, most of what we see is that he had no true feeling for his children, at least that they could see and just like his parents, did the best that he could do.  Growing up without love and caring could not have prepared him to give back the same, so in a way, he became his parents.  What he was able to express on the screen was something that he evidently could not express in his life.  If this is the case, it was very sad for him and for his children, who also had the misfortune of growing up having to live up to the Brando name.  Perhaps Barnes will revisit the concept and either add to the story or make it less talky, but meanwhile, watching the three men portray this Icon is worth the cost of a ticket, and you might just learn something about your own life from his. "A Love Lost Life" will continue through March 14, 2010 at The Theatre Building Chicago, located at 1225 W. Belmont.  Performances are Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 p.m., Saturday early performance at 5 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m.  Tickets are $25 (open seating) and can be purchased at the box office, by phone at 773-327-5252 or at any Ticketmaster outlet and online at www.ticketmaster.com.   About Alan Bresloff Alan Bresloff, once an actor himself, has been covering the Chicago Theater Scene since 1993, first as the Theater and Arts critic for LaRaza newspaper, then with Salsachicago.com and then onto Extra Newspaper and The Epoch Times.  He also writes for ElImparcial and TeleGuia.  His reviews can also be seen on www.theatreinchicago.com.  Alan does not call himself a "critic" but a "reviewer" as he tries to educate the reader about theater itself, what is a good value, what to look for in a play or musical and more.  "Exposure to theater is a very important part of a young person's life" he says. "Learning about the arts and culture is in fact learning about life" and he tries to explain more in his reviews than just if it is good or bad.  Even some of the poor productions have some value, he often says and he would love your feedback on shows that you have seen.  You can write him here or at albresloff@sbcglobal.net.