REVIEW: 9/11 Firefighters eulogized in 'The Guys'

Michael Ingram and Rita Broderick in The Guys.Photo Credit: Michael Ensminger

Ten years after THE terrorist attack, 9/11 has become a kind of national holiday. Citizens are encouraged to fly their flags, attend community events, concerts, picnics, even remembrance runs. On the flip side, conspiracy theories persist, t-shirts are sold, TSA thugs fondle our children and our infirm elderly at airports in the illusory name of "security," and all of it is based on the realization that our identity as Americans changed forever that fateful day. An event like that brings out the best and worst in people.

"The Guys," one of the very first plays to emerge after this tragedy, reminds us that approximately one tenth of the fatalities on 9/11 were firefighters and other first responders who willingly but unwittingly went to their deaths in the hope of saving the lives of others, and that our duty, first and foremost, is to honor their sacrifice and grieve.

The premise is simple, and based on a true-life encounter. A fire department captain (Michael Ingram) who was off duty that shift, is required to give eight eulogies in two weeks, and can't think of what to say. A former journalist (Rita Broderick) agrees to write the eulogies for him. They sit in chairs facing each other. He describes four unique and memorable individuals. She writes the eulogies. Not a lot of external action, but inside, there is a strange and compelling transfer of grief. He feels better, because now he can express his loss while affirming the lives and work of his men. She pays a terrible and heart-wrenching price, writing intimately and authentically about guys she never met, and never will.

This kind of play is an actor's tour de force opportunity, and the great danger would be to just let the actors direct themselves, which could lead to all kinds of self-indulgence. Thankfully, Firehouse Theater Company's production, playing at the John Hand Theater through September 17, has brought in Don DeVeux, an accomplished actor AND director, to guide the actors into the deep places of their psyches required to transform this from a performance into an experience. DeVeux also provides a bigger picture, a concept and context through which the audience, a decade later, can enter into this intimate conversation. Our response rightfully falls somewhere between those of the two characters.

"The Guys" runs 75 minutes and is performed without intermission. Each performance is followed by readings of first-hand accounts of the events on 9/11.

There is no shortage of 9/11 themed programming available as the anniversary approaches. But if you want to get up close and personal, check out Firehouse Theater Company's production of Anne Nelson's "The Guys."

"The Guys" plays through September 17 at the John Hand Theatre/Colorado Free University, 7653 East First Place, Denver. Call 303-562-3232 or visit www.firehousetheatercompany.com for information.