A century or so ago, war stories were usually simple. Villains were obvious, stakes were life and death, the end was either victory or defeat.
The geopolitics of the 21st century have scrambled any rote framing for a war story. Are the good guys really good, are the bad guys really bad, does anyone ever really win?
Amidst the increasing complications involved in setting any story in a combat zone, playwright Bo Wilson has come up with an elegant alternative. His articulate, compelling, and often very funny two-hander, "The Three O'clock Briefing," explores a slew of issues related to modern military exercises without ever directly involving guns, combat, or enemy engagement at all.
The clever conceit pits a brother and sister on opposite sides of a journalistic question: what is the truth and who has the right to know that truth? From that starting point, other hot-button topics emerge through the personal stories of the characters. Before its end, the play delivers a deeper understanding of PTSD, sexual assault, and "don't ask / don't tell."
Lieutenant Colonel Cary Bookman is a public affairs officer for the Marines, stationed in an unnamed country in the Mideast. His little sister Bobbi, formerly a soldier in the Army who has found an award-winning career in journalism, is covering the American effort in this country.
Wilson establishes a playfully combative dynamic between these characters early on as each tries to maintain their loving relationship even as their jobs are forcing them into conflict. Bobbi has heard rumors that American forces are going to abandon their occupation, Cary is forced to take a "can neither confirm nor deny" posture to those rumors.
It's hard to know whether the depiction of military communications work is realistic but Wilson expertly captures sibling banter, often to amusing effect, as in this exchange as Bobbi continues to badger Cary for information:
CARY: I’m agreeing with you.
BOBBI: You’re not. You’re using agreement to shut me up.
CARY: Is that all it ever took?
BOBBI: No.
While the verbal sparring of the first act has an impressive joke density, given the subject matter, the second act shows Wilson's ability to capture inner turmoil in an character's onstage behavior. Both Cary and Bobbi end up having demons to wrestle with and a dramatic occurrence at the end of the first act has them facing them head-on.
In a truly surprising turn, the revelations that emerge ultimately lead to a recontextualization of the Bookman family history, as the roles of journalist and soldier get further complicated with the reality of them being brother and sister.
"Three O'Clock Briefing" delivers a number of set pieces where the impact of violence is explicated in vivid detail. Even so, some of its most heartfelt moments reflect how profound familial love endures amidst life's complications.
From a theatrical standpoint, the play provides two vibrant, captivating characters that actors will love digging into. A gripping play that doesn't require any awkward pantomimed shoot-outs, "Three O'clock Briefing" has all the appeal of an exceptional war story without any of the blood and guts.
(My preview of the staging of "Three O'clock Briefing" can be found at StyleWeekly.com)
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