In Milwaukee Repertory Theater's comedy 'God of Carnage,' two couples jab and punch with words

Contrary to the usual disclaimer, animals were harmed during the making of Milwaukee Repertory Theater's "God of Carnage." In the fictional world of Yasmina Reza's savage comedy, that is.

Also, some fancy art books took a beating. Some flowers are halfway to compost. And a pricey piece of technology will soon be joining Steve Jobs in the afterlife.

As for the four bickering human beings in "God of Carnage," their social carapaces were ripped off, exposing the elemental quivering fury inside.

Ryan Quinn, who previously helmed the Rep's "Dad's Season Tickets," returns to direct Reza's darker comedy, which was translated into English by Christopher Hampton.

It begins in media res. Veronica (Heidi Armbruster) and Michael (Adam Poss) have invited Annette (Makha Mthembu) and Alan (Elan Zafir) over to talk, after Annette and Alan's 11-year-old son clobbered Veronica and Michael's son in the mouth with a stick, knocking out two teeth.

Veronica, who's writing a book about the Darfur tragedy, is the leader of this seemingly civil discourse, with a serving of passive-aggression under the surface. Pretty soon the friendly veneer cracks, and the four descend into bitchery, ad hominem attacks, blatant sexism and inchoate rage, like a "Seinfeld" episode scripted by Jean-Paul Sartre.

Judge me if you will, but in this kind of battle I'm nearly always drawn to the bluntest, rudest character, and Zafir's Alan, a workaholic attorney, does not disappoint, dubbing his own son a savage and espousing a kill-or-be-killed philosophy while taking endless hilarious phone calls about a pharma company crisis, to the dismay of the other three. By play's end, Reza's comedy has neatly connected this cellular crisis to the people in the living room.

Armbruster's Veronica — who declares, "I don't have a sense of humor. And I have no intention of acquiring one" — has the furthest to fall, but when she does she ups the comic chaos.

The carefully composed dignity of Mthembu's Annette makes this comedy's signature messy moment all the more startling. As for Poss' Michael, if his daughter ever finds out what he did, he'll need a witness protection program.

If you go

Milwaukee Repertory Theater performs "God of Carnage" through May 14 at the Quadracci Powerhouse, 108 E. Wells St. For tickets, visit milwaukeerep.com or call (414) 224-9490.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: In Milwaukee Rep's comedy 'God of Carnage,' couples battle furiously