St. Louis Stage Capsules

Newly Reviewed
Circle Mirror Transformation Reviewed in this issue. Gruesome Playground Injuries Reviewed in this issue. Ongoing
God of Carnage Two wealthy couples, ostensibly people of goodwill, meet after their children have duked it out in a schoolyard brawl. Relations between the two couples proceed to deteriorate, to the point where they're misbehaving worse than their miscreant kids. Over the course of 90 intermissionless minutes, a comedy of manners reveals some very ill-mannered adults. This farce by French playwright Yasmina Reza (in a translation by Christopher Hampton) is definitely a crowd pleaser. It's also predictable and one-note, condescending and elitist. Reza knows her audience is upscale, and she plays them like a fiddle. If you're looking to feel smugly superior to the characters onstage, then Carnage is the show for you. Performed by the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis through November 6 at the Loretto-Hilton Center, 130 Edgar Road, Webster Groves. Tickets are $19 to $72. Call 314-968-4925 or visit www.repstl.org.
— Dennis Brown