Harbinger Theatre, Sand Lake Center for the Arts in Averill Park, N.Y.
Written by Rebecca Gilman
Directed by Brian Sheldon
“What? What’s funny?”
A lot is funny in this serious look at relationships in middle America at this point in time. A lot is serious as well. Peg (played by Robin Leary) is a recent widow whose only truly close friend is an orphaned boy, Ryan, who lives nearby. He has been in jail for three years, and his only real visitors there were Peg and her husband. As a result, he feels like they are his family, and he stops in to see Peg every chance he gets. She feels similarly close to him. She has plans that include him. The title of this play refers to his “state” of mind, and hers as well, as their friendship follows its natural course; it grows and diminishes and grows again. It is lovely storytelling.
Leary makes Peg into a warm human being who is unable to shake her faith in her young friend even when he destroys her trust in his ability to keep her secrets. She plays this very essential aspect of her role with a truth that is almost earth-shattering. She has a truly wonderful way of speaking; it opens the play to a reality that gives us a sense of being flies on the wall eavesdropping instead of sitting quietly in an audience with other attendees, laughing when appropriate. That is due, in great part, to the fine work of director Brian Sheldon.
Ryan is played with an elasticity that is mind-bogglingly real by Leo Hernandez. His mood changes are the elastic drivers for the play’s plot, and Hernandez makes them so honest and realistic that, once again, we assume the roles of eavesdroppers. Their relationship borders on the surreal as they become family, then neighbors, then family again as she works diligently to protect him from the vindictive actions of the town’s sheriff, another neighbor, who seems to ardently wish to take Ryan out of her neighborhood at any cost.
Sheriff Kris is played with deliberate nastiness by Lisa Bryk, who brings hostility to a new level in this play. She gives her all to vindictively pursuing Ryan’s motives, even when she does not actually know what they are. She assumes more than she can prove and ultimately proves more than she can honestly know. This is a difficult role in a play that mocks the actions of the law while also instilling into it a reasonable concept of what the law will do to achieve its goals. Bryk handles these transitions with ease and makes her role in the play highly believable.
Her assistant, a new cop, is her niece Dani, played by Brooke Hutchins. She does well in this role of a nervous young woman whose actions ultimately drive the drama into the comedy. Her interpretation of the part gives it its perfection.
Hernandez plays the victim role with an honesty that is also reflected in the design of the play. Adam Coons’ magnificent set would be considered Broadway worthy, and the perfect costumes for Peg and Ryan have been designed by Rachel Stewart. Laura Darling makes many masterful lighting design decisions with the limited facilities of the Sand Lake Center stage. The sound design work highlights the play’s time and emotional content under the masterful hand of Shaya Reyes.
All in all, this is a perfect production of an intriguing story written by Rebecca Gilman, the Laurence Olivier Best Play Award nominee for her play “Boy Gets Girl” in 2002. It is a short run, so book your tickets today.
“Swing State,” produced by Harbinger Theatre, plays at the Sand Lake Center for the Arts, 2680 NY-43, Averill Park, NY, through November 23. For information and tickets, visit Harbinger Theatre’s website.
