Caro Dubberly and Jessica Ludd in “paper backs.” Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography.
The doubleheader presented by 4615 Theatre Company at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda is as much a series of compelling conversations as it is a theatrical production. The plays, “paper backs” and “Life Jacket” are poetic two-handers that spur audiences to think outside the conventional box of drama when considering what theatre can be and how theatre should look.
The production values of both pieces help lift the playwrights’ respective poetry and prose into fulfilling theatrical moments…a powerfully thought-provoking evening.
The first play, “paper backs,” penned by DC-based writer Tristan B. Willis, is a gossamer-like experience but one with ponderous intentions. A writer and an artist occupy a small apartment that serves as both a studio and modest library. It is the poetry inherent in each of their endeavors—the literal poetry of the writer and the visual poetic expressions of the artist—that keeps this piece floating along. Willis has created something that is part prose poem, part dramatic tableau, and part elaborate dance between two characters struggling to define themselves and their relationship.
They love, they talk about their dreams, they talk about the future, the past, all of it, in this seemingly tight space that is perhaps meant to suggest the inevitability of growing out of such small confines. Yet Willis never lets go of that thread of poetry, that suggestion of a continuous dance between them. The two actors, Caro Dubberly (the writer) and Jessica Ludd (the artist), do a magnificent job of sustaining the tension of this dance. There is a constant push–pull in their dynamic that defines the overall structure of this play. It truly is about a moment in time for this couple, and audiences are forced to be “present” with them every step of the way. Lighting design by Pierce Stoneburner wonderfully wraps the characters in a blanket of an isolation that seems to be of their own making. The sound/music design by Jordan Friend further creates the kind of ambiance that this play needs to give it a fuller life. Steve Zimmerman’s direction perfectly captures the nuances of the relationship. Audiences experience a lifetime of key, couple milestones in forty minutes—an impressive accomplishment.
Eamon Patrick Walsh and Jonathan Del Palmer in “Life Jacket.” Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography.
In the second piece, Caridad Svich’s “Life Jacket,” audiences are also presented with a two-hander that centers around the raw, beating heart of a relationship between two characters joined together by a journey, both literally and figuratively. Their particular journey takes place at sea. On one hand, it’s a fairly common Sunday outing on a boat—drinking beer, listening to the radio, basking in the breeze—nothing too out of the ordinary. On the other hand, it’s a chaotic monsoon, complete with a shipwreck and bizarre at-sea encounters reflected in the language of the piece itself. At some points, the play does become a bit hard to follow. Much of Svich’s work (she won an OBIE for Lifetime Achievement) seems to gravitate toward dream-like experiences that leave audiences trying to piece together one giant, theatrical puzzle.
The two actors in this production, Jonathan Del Palmer and Eamon Patrick Walsh, are tasked with having to depict both the mundane aspects of their relationship and also that space where the relationship intersects with the larger-than-life, metaphorical themes that the play tries to convey. There is a fine line here between the average boat ride and a “Moby Dick”-esque crusade (a book mentioned a number of times). Palmer and Walsh deftly work to bring theatergoers on their journey, despite the chaotic and sometimes unclear trajectory of that journey.
Jordan Friend’s direction, combined with Sarah Beth Hall’s minimal, yet very effective, scenic design, further flesh out the main themes of the piece. Pierce Stoneburner’s lighting design is perhaps the biggest “wow” factor in this production. The timing is powerful and spot-on and the cohesion it creates is important to the overall dynamic.
“Life Jacket” and “paper backs” were good choices as far as pairing plays. They offer just enough similarities to help them make sense as a single night of theatre but were disparate enough to give viewers two very different experiences. The production values of both pieces help lift the playwrights’ respective poetry and prose into fulfilling theatrical moments. All in all, a powerfully thought-provoking evening.
Running time: One hour and 40 minutes with a 15-minute intermission.
“paper backs” and “Life Jacket” runs through February 26, 2023,presented by 4615 Theatre Company at the Writer’s Center, 4508 Walsh St., Bethesda, MD 20815. For more information and tickets, go online. Masks are required at all times.
