Review of Guards at the Taj at Steppenwolf Theatre Company

Once upon a time I went to a show and it was called Guards at the Taj. It was by Rajiv Joseph, and it was directed by Amy Morton. It was about two friends Humayun (Omar Metwally) and Babur (Arian Moayed) who were both guards at the Taj Mahal before it was the Taj Mahal, when it just being built. They have known each other for a very long time, and they are faced with a difficult task. It is about brotherhood, duty, and what makes the world beautiful. I thought this was a really funny and moving show that made you think about what people see as morally correct and what people actually do.

I thought the first scene of the show was a super great scene because you got to know the characters so well. They are like a smarter Pinky and the Brain. They are very good friends, but they are polar opposites. The first person you see is Humayun who is onstage while the audience is taking their seats. He is very stoic, but he also has a sweet side: he really likes birds, so when he sees them chirping in the tree, even though he is supposed to be stoic and immovable, he smiles. When he realizes he is smiling, he immediately goes back to being stoic. It seems like he feels like he can't express emotion because that makes him seem week, but when he is around Babur he really can't help himself. Babur is very cheerful and bad at time management and in awe of everything. He also feels like he should be stoic, but he is less successful at being stoic than Humayun. It is adorable to watch them interact and then have Humayun realize he has to shut it down and be professional. This scene is very humorous because of the realizations they make that you have made just seconds before. There is a terrible job they don't want to do, and then they realize they are going to be the ones to do it. And it is not harem duty, which is the job they want.

The characters said a lot of sexist things, but the audience sort of glazed over it because it was set a long time ago. It was kind of tough for me to ignore the sexist comments. I think it was probably realistic for the time and I still loved the characters and didn't want anything bad to happen to them. I don't think it was a bad choice to make them say sexist things because that was true to the time period. But it reminded me that it is easy to gloss over sexism if you feel for a character or a person because sexism is such an inherent part of our culture. There are no female characters in this show, but women get talked about quite a bit. Mumtaz Mahal was the favorite wife of Shah Jahan and she died and was beautiful and Shah Jahan wanted to make something as beautiful as her. (Why does the world favor beautiful women over smart women? Maybe because no one wants to look at a smart building?) The other women who get mentioned are the women in the harem. Women in the harem are wives, concubines, and employees of Shah Jahan and they are basically there for his pleasure, to demonstrate his power over other people, and to protect the harem. They don't mention these women protectors in the play, but they seem so cool. They were called urdubegis. It would be cool to have a play about being one of the women in the harem that takes place at the same time. They could also be struggling with when it is moral to do your duty and when to refuse, just like Babur and Humayun do. You could call it Urdubegis at the Harem.

There is a very big plot point in this show that I want to talk about, but it is a really big spoiler, so if you've already seen or read the show, you can read the spoiler paragraph at Ada Grey Spoils It for You.

People who would like this show are people who like moral questions, brotherhood, and harem duty. I think that people should definitely go see this show. It is such an interesting, beautiful, and sometimes disturbing show. It has amazing performances. I loved it.

Photos: Michael Brosilow