Giving Them Shelter: Saroyan’s ‘Cave Dwellers’

A dilapidated theater hours away from the wrecking ball might be the last place you’d look for intimations of permanence in the human condition. But to “The Cave Dwellers”--an impromptu collective of homeless beggars in William Saroyan’s 1958 play--the crumbling stage cements their humanity in ways no amount of adversity can sever. Offering far more than the primitive shelter of an urban cave, the theater becomes their womb, hiding place, home, church and world.

Saroyan’s boundless compassion and optimism may seem like alien territory in these jaded times. Yet Stephanie Shroyer’s quietly impassioned staging illuminates the enduring significance of this delicate and, in many ways, unfashionable work, which could easily dissolve into sentimental mush with clumsier handling. She never lets us forget that miraculous sparks of caring occur amid the most dire circumstances.

A more appropriate inaugural production for Shroyer’s 24th Street Theatre would be hard to imagine. The company is dedicated to bringing the revitalizing influence of the performing arts to an underserved North University Park district. The venue, a converted garment factory a few blocks south of the Santa Monica Freeway, was itself rescued from demolition, and Shroyer (known for innovative environmental staging at more mainstream sites such as the Matrix Theatre and Pacific Resident Theatre) has incorporated its gutted ambience into the production like a layer of skin.

Yet this is no community theater project requiring tolerance or lowered standards; Shroyer achieves uncompromised quality with the company’s opening volley. A first-rate professional cast skillfully renders the most intricate nuances in Saroyan’s humanist call to arms.

At the top of the heap is Wesley Mann as the former actor and self-styled King who “rules” over the space not by any overt exercise of power, but by the example of gracious wisdom he sets. Life is for putting up with, he says--with humor, if possible. Taking his own advice, the King cycles through a vast array of hilarious characterizations in which Mann’s limbs prove as malleable as his persona.

Marian Mercer’s Queen is eloquently affecting, voicing some of the most heartfelt lyrical passages. Standouts in a strong supporting cast are Katy Boyer, Jay McAdams and J. Steven Markus.

Saroyan’s nearly plotless storytelling takes some easing into--it requires acclimating to the fact that nothing momentous is going to happen. But Saroyan doesn’t set out so much to reveal something new as to remind us of what we already know but too easily forget--that we are creatures capable of infinite generosity. In the end, it just might buy us a little more time.

* “The Cave Dwellers,” 24th Street Theatre, 1117 W. 24th St., Los Angeles. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 3 p.m. Ends Nov. 16. $12. (213) 658-4050. Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes.