‘Atomic Quintet’ in Search of Harmony

Steven Leigh Morris’ “Atomic Quintet” at Playwrights’ Arena is a crazy quilt of a play that tackles topics ranging from the politically monumental to the personally petty.

The action is set in 1953, in a music conservatory in the Silver Mountain region of Nevada. American fortunes are at a peak--but then, so are McCarthyism, racism, the Cold War and the nuclear threat. Against this backdrop of paranoia and repression, Morris marshals his carefully diverse quintet, a sweeping cross section of archetypes reflecting critical issues of the day.

There’s the Russian conservatory head, Irena (Lena Starostina), survivor of Stalin’s purges; Irena’s American husband Ben (William Mesnik), intellectual and closet racist; Japanese American violinist Kimiko (Alma Cielo), trapped midway between Nagasaki and the American Dream; African American accompanist Jamal (Gerald James), struggling in the shadow of racism; and a deranged Latino soldier (Ruben Madera), AWOL from the nuclear testing site nearby. After several attempts are made upon Jamal’s life, the characters try to sort out the mystery in various monologues, addressed to an unseen interrogator.

There’s a nicely surreal flow to Morris’ intellectual plethora, and director Jon Lawrence Rivera coaxes credible performances out of his competent cast. Yet the cosmic sweep of plot transpires at the expense of credibility. Beyond a certain epigrammatic pithiness, the play remains determinedly eclectic--and baffling.

* “Atomic Quintet,” Playwrights’ Arena, 5262 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m. Ends May 24. $17. (213) 466-1767. Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes.