26/03/2026
Here's what ππ’π¬π¦π΄πͺπ₯π¦ ππ¦πΈπ΄ has to say about πΌ πππ‘π ππ£ πππ ππ€π€ππ¨, now playing at The BRAVO!
March 26, 2026
ππππ¦π π₯ππ©πππͺ: The BRAVO! Theatre's A Walk in the Woods
A world worth saving?
By Don Beaudreau.
Lee Blessing's Pulitzer-prize-nominated play A Walk in the Woods was written in the mid-1980's during the Reagan/Gorbachev "Cold War" era, but it is chilling in its relevance to today's efforts at global diplomacy. Inspired by the historic incident of 1982 when the US negotiator Paul Nitze and his Soviet colleague Yuli Kvitsinsky took a walk in the woods during the Geneva nuclear arms negotiations, this fictionalized play explores the weighty issues of human survival in the light of continuing nuclear arms buildup internationally.
The play is anything but boring! And the two main characters are anything but "talking heads." Blessing masterfully brings to the stage the complex but ultimately vulnerable personalities of these two made-up protagonists: the young, idealistic, less-experienced US negotiator, John Honeyman and the mature, realistic, worn-down-with-experience Soviet Union negotiator, Andrey Botvinnik.
Under the skilled direction of David Goldman, Bradley Felix (Honeyman) and Maloy Murdock (Botvinnik), shine brightly on the BRAVO! stage. Each character becomes a real but very lovable sparring partner, Honeyman as the impatient visionary who believes he can make a difference on the world stage, and Botvinnik as the playful realist who enjoys his self-appointed role as mentor to the American.
Those "weighty issues" addressing questions of human survival in the light of nuclear arms buildup are interwoven with the particular personality traits displayed by the characters. The young American wants to get the treaty accomplished as quickly as possible, while the older Soviet has a long-history that informs him that little if anything will be accomplished despite their protracted efforts. The former exhibits a kind of Utopian hope whereas the latter shows a realpolitik position: "practical politics" based on pragmatism and self-interest.
This major political/philosophical difference between the men (and presumably reflective of their different cultures) allows Botvinnik as the seasoned professional to have great fun in teasing the idealistic, goal-oriented Honeyman. But to be fair, the American gets his digs in at the Soviet, too. In other words, neither character is a flat, predictable personality. In effect, they wear each other down to their real essence, and in doing so they become deeply connected. Enough so, that near the conclusion of the play, both men agree that what they have in common is a "conscience."
The ending of the play is, in fact, quite moving and holds up hope for us today that international negotiations and treaties will somehow be successful; that each of us on the planet will be able to live in peace with others. Truly, throughout A Walk in the Woods, I kept being reminded of that old Pogo cartoon character who said, "We have met the enemy and he is us."
The play presents us today with a strong message seen through the spectrum of the ordinary moment some four decades ago, where two ultimately ordinary men took a walk in the woods to discuss saving the world, and in the process discovered the common humanity in the other.
A Walk in the Woods runs March 26-29; all shows at 4 pm. Reserve at tickets at thebravo.org or Its Kida Bazarβ¦.And Kinda Not. 350 pesos
