The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel
Encyclopedia
The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel is a play by David Rabe.
Rabe's first play in his Vietnam War
trilogy
that continued with Sticks and Bones
and Streamers
, its story is bracketed by scenes depicting the death of the emotionally stunted and mentally disturbed title character, who mindlessly grabs at a live hand grenade
tossed into the Saigon
brothel
he's visiting. A born loser who is drafted into the United States Army
, Hummel immediately encounters difficulties with both his sergeant
s and fellow recruits, none of whom trust him. As he stumbles through basic training and comes ever closer to the battlefield, he is guided by Ardell, a mysteriously ambiguous character who seemingly is an officer but serves as Hummel's conscience and a Greek chorus
-like figure as well. Although injured repeatedly, Hummel is so determined to be a soldier he passes up a chance to go home, a decision that ultimately proves fatal.
Under the auspices of the New York Shakespeare Festival
, the off-Broadway
production, directed by Jeff Bleckner
, opened on May 19, 1971 at The Public Theater. The cast included William Atherton
as Hummel, Albert Hall as Ardell, and Joe Fields
as Sgt. Tower
For the Broadway
production, Pavlo Hummel was brought to the Longacre Theatre
in April of 1977, directed by David Wheeler
. Previews began on April 14th and ran for eleven performances before opening on April 24th, 1977 for 117 performances. The cast included Al Pacino
as Hummel, Gustave Johnson as Ardell, and Joe Fields reprising his role as Sgt. Tower.
Nominations
Rabe's first play in his Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
trilogy
Trilogy
A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected, and that can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, or video games...
that continued with Sticks and Bones
Sticks and Bones
Sticks and Bones is a 1971 play by David Rabe. The black comedy focuses on David, a blind Vietnam War veteran who finds himself unable to come to terms with his actions on the battlefield and alienated from his family because they neither can accept his disability nor understand his wartime...
and Streamers
Streamers
Streamers is a play by David Rabe. After premiering at the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut in 1975, the production transferred to Broadway, opening on April 21, 1976 at Lincoln Center's Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre, where it ran for 478 performances...
, its story is bracketed by scenes depicting the death of the emotionally stunted and mentally disturbed title character, who mindlessly grabs at a live hand grenade
Hand grenade
A hand grenade is any small bomb that can be thrown by hand. Hand grenades are classified into three categories, explosive grenades, chemical and gas grenades. Explosive grenades are the most commonly used in modern warfare, and are designed to detonate after impact or after a set amount of time...
tossed into the Saigon
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City , formerly named Saigon is the largest city in Vietnam...
brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
he's visiting. A born loser who is drafted into the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, Hummel immediately encounters difficulties with both his sergeant
Sergeant
Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries, police forces, and other uniformed organizations around the world. Its origins are the Latin serviens, "one who serves", through the French term Sergent....
s and fellow recruits, none of whom trust him. As he stumbles through basic training and comes ever closer to the battlefield, he is guided by Ardell, a mysteriously ambiguous character who seemingly is an officer but serves as Hummel's conscience and a Greek chorus
Greek chorus
A Greek chorus is a homogenous, non-individualised group of performers in the plays of classical Greece, who comment with a collective voice on the dramatic action....
-like figure as well. Although injured repeatedly, Hummel is so determined to be a soldier he passes up a chance to go home, a decision that ultimately proves fatal.
Under the auspices of the New York Shakespeare Festival
New York Shakespeare Festival
New York Shakespeare Festival is the previous name of the New York City theatrical producing organization now known as the Public Theater. The Festival produced shows at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, as part of its free Shakespeare in the Park series, at the Public Theatre near Astor Place...
, the off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
production, directed by Jeff Bleckner
Jeff Bleckner
Jeff Bleckner is an American theatre and television director.Born in Brooklyn, New York, Bleckner made his directorial debut off-Broadway with The Unseen Hand/Forensic and the Navigators, an evening of one-act plays by Sam Shepard, in 1970...
, opened on May 19, 1971 at The Public Theater. The cast included William Atherton
William Atherton
William Atherton , born William Atherton Knight II, is an American film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Atherton was born in Orange, Connecticut, the son of Roby and Robert Atherton Knight...
as Hummel, Albert Hall as Ardell, and Joe Fields
Joe Fields
Joseph Charles Fields, Jr. is a former professional American football center and guard in the National Football League for the New York Jets and the New York Giants...
as Sgt. Tower
For the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
production, Pavlo Hummel was brought to the Longacre Theatre
Longacre Theatre
The Longacre Theatre is a Broadway theatre located at 220 West 48th Street in midtown Manhattan.-Theatre History:Designed by architect Henry Beaumont Herts in 1912, it was named for Longacre Square, the original name for Times Square...
in April of 1977, directed by David Wheeler
David Wheeler (actor)
David Wheeler is a film and television actor. His best known role to date is his brief but very memorable portrayal of Selto Durka on the television series Farscape.- Filmography :*The Murderer...
. Previews began on April 14th and ran for eleven performances before opening on April 24th, 1977 for 117 performances. The cast included Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
as Hummel, Gustave Johnson as Ardell, and Joe Fields reprising his role as Sgt. Tower.
Off Broadway Production
| Actor |
Role |
|---|---|
| William Atherton William Atherton William Atherton , born William Atherton Knight II, is an American film, stage and television actor.-Early life:Atherton was born in Orange, Connecticut, the son of Roby and Robert Atherton Knight... |
Pavlo Hummel |
| Victoria Racimo | Yen / Second Viet Cong |
| Albert Hall Albert Hall Albert P. Hall is an American actor.Born in Brighton, Alabama, Hall graduated from the Columbia University School of the Arts in 1971. That same year he appeared Off-Broadway in The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel and on Broadway in the Melvin Van Peebles musical Ain't Supposed to Die a Natural Death... |
Ardell |
| Joe Fields Joe Fields Joseph Charles Fields, Jr. is a former professional American football center and guard in the National Football League for the New York Jets and the New York Giants... |
Sgt. Tower |
| Earl Hindman Earl Hindman Earl John Hindman was an American actor, best-known for his role as the kindly neighbor Wilson W. Wilson Jr... |
Kress |
| Peter Cameron | Parker |
| Rovert Lehman | Pierce |
| Anthony R. Charnota | Cpl. Ferrara |
| Edward Hermann | Hinkle |
| Frederick Coffin | Mickey |
| Sloane Shelton | Mrs. Hummel |
| Garrett Moris | Jones |
| Christal Kim | Mama-san |
| Lee Wallace | Sgt. Brisbey |
| John Benson | Sgt. Wall |
| Bob Delegall | Parham |
| Edward Cannan | Captain Saunders / Captain Miller / Lieutenant Smith |
| Steven Clarke | Burns |
| Edward Cannan | Captain Saunders |
| John Walter Davis | Ryan |
| D. Franklyn Lenthall | Hendrix |
| Hoshin Seki | First Viet Cong / Farmer |
Broadway Production
| Cast |
Role |
|---|---|
| Al Pacino Al Pacino Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared... |
Pavlo Hummel |
| Tisa Chang | Yen / Second Viet Cong |
| Gustave Johnson | Ardell |
| Joe Fields Joe Fields Joseph Charles Fields, Jr. is a former professional American football center and guard in the National Football League for the New York Jets and the New York Giants... |
Sgt. Tower |
| Larry Bryggman Larry Bryggman Larry Bryggman is an American actor.-Early life:Bryggman was born in Concord, California of Swedish descent; his father worked for a neon sign company and his mother was a piano teacher. Bryggman attended the City College of San Francisco as well as the American Theatre Wing in New York... |
Kress |
| Max Wright | Parker |
| Lance Henriksen Lance Henriksen Lance James Henriksen is an American actor and artist best known to film and television audiences for his roles in science fiction, action, and horror films such as the Alien film franchise, and on television shows such as Millennium.... |
Pierce |
| Jack Kehon | Corporal Jackson |
| Paul Guilfoyle Paul Guilfoyle Paul Guilfoyle is an American television and film actor. He is currently a regular cast member of the forensic television drama CSI: Crime Scene Investigation where he plays Captain Jim Brass.-Early life:... |
Hinkle |
| Ron Hunter | Mickey |
| Andrea Masters | Mrs. Sorrentino |
| Rebecca Drake | Mrs. Hummel |
| Don Blakely | Jones |
| Anne Miyamoto | Mama-san / Farmer |
| Richard Lynch | Sgt. Brisbey |
| Sully Boyar | Sgt. Wall |
| Damien Leake | Parham |
| Cameron Mason | Various Vietnamese |
| Gary Bolling | Burns / Private Grennel |
| Brad Sullivan Brad Sullivan Brad Sullivan was an American actor known for character roles in television and on film and stage.-Early life and career:... |
Captain Saunders |
| Michael Dinelli | Ryan |
| John Aquino | Hendrix |
| Kevin Maung | Gomez / First Viet Cong / Vietnamese Boy |
Awards and nominations
Awards- 1971 Drama Desk Award for Most Promising Director – Jeff Bleckner
- 1971 Drama Desk Award for Most Promising Playwright – David Rabe
- 1971 Obie Award for Distinguished Direction – Jeff Bleckner
- 1971 Theatre World Award – William Atherton
- 1977 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Play – Al Pacino
- 1977 Theatre World Award - Joe Fields
- 1977 Tony Award for Best Actor in Play – Al Pacino
Nominations
- 1977 Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play – Joe Fields