Stein/Holum Projects, the experimental theater group headed by Suli Holum and Deborah Stein, has brought its latest production, The Wholehearted, to Los Angeles. The short, blood-spattered solo play tells the story of Dee Crosby (Holum), a female pro boxer who used her fists to become a champion, only to be suddenly attacked one night by her knife-wielding ex-manager and -husband. Seething with rage and jealousy (after she dumped him for another woman), he stabs her repeatedly and almost kills her. Dee is unable to keep boxing after that but refuses to play the victim, finding the courage and heart to fight back against life in other ways. Developed in various residencies and workshops, supported by the Mellon Foundation and Brooklyn Arts Council, The Wholehearted combines physical theatre with video projection to create its unique world. Holum, clad in tank top and baggy shorts, prowls around on a small, square stage which resembles a boxing ring, with the audience watching closely from all four sides. An on-stage cameraman (Stivo Arnocy, who also designed the projections) follows after her from time to time, shooting footage that we see on overhead screens. Interspersed with the live action are passages from TV interviews with the real-life Dee Crosby. The total effect is rapid-fire, dazzling, powerful. Holum, portraying a tough, working-class gal from Bakersfield who is as good with a country-western song as she is with a right-hand uppercut, holds things together with her tenacious, gutsy performance. Her work as co-writer (with Stein) is equally strong and uncompromising.
