THEATER: Anglican Woe

Remember the theater of ideas, in which characters represented (and debated) their convictions about public issues instead of whimpering about their private demons? Remember the Church of England, which retains its power to make randy royals miserable but has apparently lost its ability to comfort and inspire ordinary parishioners?

Playwright David Hare does. And in Racing Demon, which is visiting Los Angeles in a Royal National Theatreproduction, unfashionable form and seemingly distant subject matter are suddenly made vividly relevant. At the center of Richard Eyre's dark, stark yet ever bustling production stands (or rather slumps) the weary figure of the Rev....