A strong, late-career work. While Shawn doesn't cover any new thematic ground, he nonetheless treads his familiar terrain of Western civilization's almost imperceptibly slow descent into authoritarianism. "Evening" suggests that artists, despite their vaunted ideals, will no better withstand government coercion than any other democratic citizen; indeed, their penchant for self-expression at all costs may make them eagerly complicit. A play that deserves far more American productions.