Directed by Melissa Regamble
Reviewed by Dessa Bayrock
Plays again:
Saturday, April 26 at 9:20 p.m.
Sunday, April 27 at 6:40 p.m.
Absurdism is tricky to do well; in the hands of inexperienced actors, it can turn into characters babbling nonsense at each other.
It’s lucky, then, that There’s two actors — Bryan Cutler and Gabriel Kirkley, both now alumni of the theatre department — have an ocean of experience between them.
There is nothing if not an absurdist play: the dialogue is short, sharp, and only reveals the story peripherally. The action — or inaction, as the case may be — is carried effortlessly by Kirkley’s deliberate facial expressions and Cutler’s hilarious inflection. Small details make all the difference when there isn’t much plot, and both actors nail these small details beautifully.
The set is simple, even for a DFest show. Two chairs stand staggered on the stage, one for each actor. The lights are kept low, and as the two characters describe memories of the beach and a woman, you can almost see both before you.
It becomes apparent that they’re describing their experience on separate dates with the same girl — or are they? While they begin the play having a conversation with each other, both are soon lost in their extremely different memories, until eventually they’re telling their separate stories to themselves.
The contrast between the two men is chilling by the finale – more so if you take the hint from the DFest program description (“one or two men”) and begin wondering if they’re actually the same person.
This is one of the home-runs of DFest 2014. With a ticket price of $5 (and bundled together with another show, It’s Called the Sugarplum, at that), it’s the perfect way to taste the weird and absurd and see if you like it.
Memorable lines:
“Tell me—did she ever whistle for you?”
*eyebrow wiggle*
