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George Bernard Shaw was a very smart man. 

If you’ve ever had any doubts about that (granted, not everybody cares a whole lot nowadays, but still…) read the “unpleasant” play that opened at the Aurora Theatre last week. Actually, The Man of Destiny isn’t unpleasant at all—that’s just one of Shaw’s jokes. Despite the heavyweight title, it is a witty—albeit rarely performed and, for Shaw, unusually brief—play included in Shaw’s collection entitled “Plays Pleasant and Unpleasant.” 

You would probably find it even more fun to see the production than to read the play. In the hands of Aurora’s well-known director, Barbara Oliver, and a very strong cast, the dialogue creates an amusing, if cerebral, duel of wits between two perfectly matched opponents: Napoleon, and a woman whose name you never get to know. You’re reading it? Well, it’s funny all right, but you can come away mostly dazzled with how smart Shaw was. (One suspects that he may have felt that way, too).  

In one of Shaw’s usual showers of words, Stacy Ross (“The Woman”) and T. Edward Webster (Napoleon) spend the play battling each other—verbally, of course—for possession of an unopened letter to Napoleon she had hoodwinked from a marvelously dumb Lieutenant (Craig Niebaur).  

It takes great talent on the part of everyone involved to create a successful production of this small piece. And, fortunately, that’s the case with Aurora. The play opens with a lengthy prologue in Shaw’s own voice that is extraordinarily well done by Jeffrey Bihr. Regrettably, Bihr then retreats into a minor role as keeper of the inn where the lengthy verbal conflict between Napoleon and the woman takes place. (It would have been nice to see more of him.) 

Craig Niebaur’s self-satisfied, not-too-bright Lieutenant, is the other well-done supporting performance. This man’s blissful oblivion to his responsibility for the mess he created by his own gullibility is a delightful minor theme. The guy doesn’t even get it that he’s in serious trouble with his own general when he has to hand over his gun. 

But the play basically hangs on the considerable talents of director Barbara Oliver and the two leads, Stacy Ross and T. Edward Webster. The action of the play is a talk-a-thon—as is any of Shaw’s plays, of course. This one differs, however, because of the relatively small cast and simple set-up. There’s only one issue and two characters to talk it out. And with these well-matched warriors no holds are barred. Lying, misrepresentation, playing upon the emotions—everything is thrown into the mix. 

And talk they do. Shaw cuts no slack. The fact that the actors (and, of course, their director) succeed in maintaining the audience’s interest in such a challenging piece of work is an impressive achievement 

The woman’s reason for stealing the letter, who wrote it, and who she is, are all complete mysteries to be fought over. She’s quite willing to lie and misrepresent and play every card in the deck to keep Napoleon from receiving the letter. And Napoleon himself is not bound by unnecessary niceties when he sees himself challenged by a worthy opponent.  

Actually, some of the details are never really cleared up, although the combatants struggle through to a resolution that makes quite good sense—within the confines of Shaw’s very special view of the world.  

But who among us would have the nerve to take on the old fellow, face to face?›