Remember in the 2004 presidential election debates when John Kerry and George W. Bush argued passionately about the ethics of human cloning. The dilemma of human cloning was on the mind of the average person so much that even the United Nations gathered to discuss whether there should be an international ban. Though matters of presidential debates have devolved into bickering about emails and tax returns, there was a time when the issue of human cloning was enough to affect a voter’s ballot.
Caryl Churchill’s A Number engages with questions of identity, child-rearing, and originality as a son, Bernard 2, (Philip Kershaw) discovers that he is a clone and that his father, Salter (Shawn Hamilton), has been lying to him about the essence of his existence. In Rec Room Arts’ crisp, to-the-point 60 minute production, director James Black, effectively navigates questions of authenticity and ethics of human cloning without unnecessary lingering or sentimental staging.
In this intimate setting, the re-arrangement of furniture and actors’ blocking are used well to set and maintain the pacing of scenes. While the costuming choices and production design (Stefän Azizi) do enough of the stylistic lifting to distinguish each clone and make the set feel dynamic, the success of this production relies on Black’s clear direction and Kershaw’s chameleon performance.
Kershaw does a phenomenal job in using his voice and physicality to distinguish between the three clones. The way he lives in his height when he is Bernard 1 adds even more menace to Bernard 1’s character. He towers over Hamilton like he’s an ant. Even when he’s sitting, he’s taller. His voice is hard and removed. He projects power.
When he’s Bernard 2, he sits with an upright posture- like he’s always been told not to slouch. His voice unsettled-like he’s always trying to say the right thing. He stands with unmotivated limpness-except when indignant about his father’s lies. He mirrors the movements of his father instead of acting on his own. As Michael Black, he’s at ease and confident. Despite being clones, each feels distinctly different. It’s almost like science can’t entirely account for human and personality difference.
Hamilton plays the shifty father well. When Bernard 2 finds out that he’s been cloned, he seeks answers from Salter. After a series of contrived consolations, Bernard 2 divulges that he knows that he is not the original. No longer able to continue lying, Salter reveals that the original son had died in a car accident. He even gave Bernard 2 the same name.
However, in the next scene, Bernard 1 shows up. He confronts Salter about his father’s neglect. Salter would rather threaten to sue the scientist for creating more than one clone than look his son in the eye and acknowledge his pain. Bernard 1 has to force his father down in a chair and harangue him like an interrogation room before Salter can admit how he abandoned his son and gave him away.
Salter creates Bernard 2 because he wants a second chance at fatherhood. A noble desire enacted through ethically dubious means. It is when Salter is contrite and fragile that his bravado comes down and Hamilton is able to give way to the feelings of regret and shame that must characterize the choice for a father so racked with guilt who sees his only option in cloning rather than getting his original son back.
At the end of the story, Salter decides to meet all the clones, and the one with whom the play ends is called Michael Black. He is married with kids and happy. Salter wants to know more personal details about him, but none of Michael’s answers is what Salter wants. The play ends precipitously. It could have gone on for longer, but an hour is all that’s needed to put forth the ideas in the play.
Rather than give any clear answers about whether human cloning is right or whether a clone is a real human, this show is more interested in the experiences and relationships that make life meaningful. Watching Bernard 2 unravel as he tries to make sense of his new reality feels no different than watching Hamlet unravel after he finds out Claudius had killed his father. One’s a clone. One’s man. Both feel. Both react.
Despite the fact that the play’s primary characters are clones, the story highlights the human impulse to create meaning and narrative. It shows the importance of memory in determining who we are and what we become. Even more, it demonstrates the power that can come from being able to overwrite an old memory to create a new one- especially without consent.
Some plays need at least two hours to tackle the themes of personhood and identity that this play achieves in one.
Performances continue through February 25 at 7:30 p.m Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at Rec Room. 100 Jackson. For more information, call 713-588-9403 or visit recroomarts.org $5-$40.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2023.
