Goodness or greatness? It’s all just “Relativity”

By LARRY ADAMS
A Seat on the Aisle

“Only Einstein can be Einstein!”

Years ago, I wrote of my late father, “He was not what the world would consider a great man. He was something much more rare: he was a good man.” Truly a fitting epitaph for him, and one to which I have firmly believed most of humanity would do well to aspire. In a world seemingly intent on celebrating both the amazing achievements and outlandish foibles of the “greats,” be they athletes, entertainers or politicians, I’ve often felt we might be better served by having a few more of the “goods” in our daily lives.

Playwright Mark St. Germain’s Relativity turns this notion a bit on its head, examining the contrast – indeed, perhaps even the incompatibility – between “goodness” and “greatness” through the lens of “The Great Man” (as his wife Mileva referred to him) himself, Albert Einstein – with thought-provoking and perhaps even surprising results.

Morgan Morton as Margaret Harding with Anthony Johnson as Albert Einstein. (Photo by Rob Slaven / IndyGhostLight.com)

Set in 1942, Relativity describes a fictional meeting between Einstein and Margaret Harding, a self-proclaimed journalist for the Jewish Daily newspaper. What starts as an amicable, almost flirtatious encounter suddenly turns into a confrontation – alternatively combative, poignant, and heartrending – after a shocking twist reveals to both them and the audience that neither character is quite what we imagined. What follows over the course of the roughly 90-minute single act is a rather rapid-fire discussion of love, family, career, and exceptionalism, and the conflicts that inevitably arise between them all.

Southbank Theatre Company offers up a nearly flawless production of this surprisingly rarely staged work, exuding professionalism in every facet. The set design, lighting and musical accompaniment are all evocative without being conspicuous, drawing the audience into the story even before it begins. Ronn Johnston’s direction is taut and meticulously paced, never allowing attention to wander, yet giving the occasional breather so necessary in a work that has the potential to be overly heavy and ponderous.

As is essential for such a challenging piece, each of the actors is top-notch. I was unfamiliar with Anthony Johnson’s work prior to this production but hope to see more of it in the future. Mr. Johnson wears the role of Einstein like a favorite, old sweater: comfortable and natural in his delivery and body language. “People see what they want,” his character at one point proclaims. “The Great Man, the traitor, the monster.” Johnson believably and even somewhat sympathetically somehow evidences them all in the course of the evening.

Morgan Morton, in my opinion one of Indy’s most talented young actresses, gives her usual polished portrayal, completely in command of the stage and the material. Though her portrayal of Margaret often comes off more harsh and petulant than I would like, making her character less sympathetic – and Einstein, by contrast, relatively more so (yes, pun intended) – Morton delivers a powerful performance, always in focus and convincingly displaying the anguish, anger, and confusion of rejection.

Miki Mathioudakis, deservedly well-known and acclaimed by the Indianapolis theater community, completes the cast in the smaller role of Einstein’s housekeeper, Ms. Dukas. Often inserted into the action as a comedic respite from the otherwise stormy proceedings, Mathioudakis nevertheless presents a fully fleshed out character, with a realistic sense of self-actualization and a wisdom all her own. “I do not expect something he cannot give,” she scolds Margaret. “He changes the world; I change his sheets.”

Relativity is a show of big ideas. They come at you, on occasion, like water from a fire hose, making you wish you had a chance to sit back and savor. At times heavy-handed, at times seemingly steering toward preachiness before blessedly pulling back, in the end Relativity comes off as surprisingly – perhaps even disturbingly – balanced. Yes, Einstein was a serial philanderer, yes, he ignored and even rejected his family in his pursuit of knowledge and the realization of his genius – but was he wrong to do so? To its credit, Relativity offers no definitive or moralizing answers. It is designed to make you think. And discuss on the way home. And think some more. And in this it definitely succeeds.

The promotional tag line for this play often seems to be, “To be a great man, must one first be a good man?” but I’m not sure that’s accurate. Rather, Relativity seems to ask, “Is it BETTER to be a good man or a great man?” The world, it turns out, apparently needs both – and sometimes the two appear to be mutually exclusive.

The answer, therefore – befittingly – is relative.

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