A Review

Life Lessons

By R. J. Donovan

Should the purpose of education be to inspire our children to learn for the sheer joy of learning -- or to prepare them to pass exams. Such is the question posed in Alan Bennett's Tony Award-winning comedy "The History Boys," closing out the season in a brisk and sharp-witted production at SpeakEasy Stage Company.

The setting is 1984 in a Sheffield school north of London. We begin in the General Studies class of the gray and grizzled Hector (Bob Colonna, at left). His philosophy is to expose the boys to the wonders of learning. And his process involves everything from poetry and music to a scene from "Now Voyager" and an entire class spoken in French and set in a whorehouse.

Do the boys enjoy their lessons? They appear to. However, the school's Headmaster (Timothy Crowe) is more concerned with his students getting into good colleges -- and the nonconformist methods employed by Hector are not necessarily in sync with those objectives.

Enter Irwin, a new teacher (barely older than his wards) who's been hired to coach the boys for the entrance exams -- both written and personal -- that will gain them access to some of the most prestigious schools in the land.

He wants the boys to reject the standard replies and knee-jerk responses, challenging them to answer questions with unusual detail and out of the ordinary analogies. Anyone can regurgitate facts. He wants his charges to spin their knowledge in surprising ways. Stun the listener so as to distinguish themselves from the rest of the pack.

The two instructors butt heads more and more as the story unfolds, with the Headmaster pushing his own agenda through the methods of Irwin. His campaign gets a surprise assist in the trouncing of Hector when it turns out the crusty old guy has been molesting several of the boys. But in an unlikely twist, the boys do not fear the inappropriate touching. In fact, they take turns allowing the dalliances as if it's a standard chore to be crossed off a To Do list.

Alan Bennett has fashioned a bright, witty, often cerebral, tale brimming with turns both highbrow and low. The language is intricate, the dialogue is haltingly real, and in the role of show's lone female teacher, Paula Plum (at left) dryly delivers some of the play's best zingers -- particularly in the second act.

Colonna (son of famed comedian Jerry Colonna), is appropriately lofty and impatient as the soon to retire Hector. Where he once envisioned a full range of professional possibilities for his life, he's now spent from his years in the classroom. And when the discovery of his inappropriate behavior is presented to him, he shrugs the conversation off in the way imperious educators dismiss questioning by those who exist outside their chalkboard kingdom.

As Irwin, Chris Thorn (at left) distances himself from the techniques and ideology of his older colleague. However, we eventually learn he has more in common with Hector than he cares to acknowledge.

As written by Bennett, each of the boys is unique. So, too, are the performances turned in by the eight actors playing the students. Of special notice is the thin, pale and Jewish Posner who sings as the drop of a downbeat; Dakin, the good looking player who's got the world on a string (and who's especially effective as he stalks Irwin up a flight of stairs); the reserved and religious Scripps; and Rudge, the jock who no one expects to excel, yet who shocks them all when, in the 11th hour, he relies on his own methods to gain entrance to the club.

The cast of young men (who, along with the principals, are all making their SpeakEasy debuts) include: Mohit Gouisaria (Akthar), Sheldon Best (Crowther), Dan Whelton (Dakin), Samson Kohanski (Lockwood), Karl Baker Olson (Posner), Jonthan Popp (Rudge), Jared Craig (Scripps) and Joe Lanza (Timms).

Director Scott Edmiston does a great job of maintaining focus while orchestrating his sizable company of actors. And Scenic Designer Janie Howland has outdone herself with a set that's overflowing with Old World intellect -- from the dictionary definitions stenciled on the stage floor to the mammoth walls of leather bound books that loom over the playing area.

Capping a season that has included terrific productions of "Some Men," "Edwin Drood" and "The Little Dog Laughed," SpeakEasy Stage Company once again shines, demonstrating an artful professionalism to be admired.

"History Boys " is at The Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street in Boston, through June 22. For information, call 617-933-8600.

Production Photos: Mike Lovett

-- OnStage Boston