Kate Eastwood Norris (The Librarian) and Holly Twyford (The Mother) in BAD BOOKS at Round House Theatre. Photo by Margot Schulman.
Should a play strive to present all sides of a given issue? In other words, is any audience experience made more meaningful if no one message or position is prioritized over another, if we get an objective look at all perspectives? In the play, “Bad Books,” this notion of striving after objectivity seems to be on the table in one mother’s fight to keep her son safe from the evil…librarian. Although, ultimately, playwright Sharyn Rothstein does seem to make a pretty emphatic and heartfelt point about the importance of books—all books.
…a deeply riveting play…Without hesitation, this is one of my top three for the season.
The character known simply as “The Mother” (Holly Twyford) initially visits the library to “civilly” discuss the matter of one very specific book with the head librarian. In an “I want to speak to the manager” equivalent of a concerned consumer’s long-simmering rage, Twyford’s character approaches “The Librarian” (Kate Eastwood Norris) with her purse loaded, ready to spar. It would appear that The Librarian had given her son Jeremy an “obscene” book. The meaning of obscenity here is immediately up for grabs. The book in question, unfortunately titled “Boob Juice,” is not however exactly what the name might suggest. The revelation of its subject matter leads to deeper questions, more concerning questions not necessarily about suitable reading material, but about what Jeremy on a much deeper level may be experiencing. Here is where the characters angrily and quite adamantly part ways—who knows best when it comes to not only what Jeremy ought to be reading, but what Jeremy is going through. Might the local librarian know him better than his own mother?
Parental helplessness is a central issue here. In the face of this helplessness is a parent’s need to lash out. The Librarian in this story just happens to be a convenient target, and what a target she becomes as The Mother immediately summons a mob of similarly helpless-feeling, angry parents. As you can imagine, the situation escalates as the play covers, among other topics, book banning, the danger of social media fanaticism, and the steep price that can come with single-minded crusades.
There are other stories that intersect. The two-hander becomes a triptych of encounters that incisively depict the often tragic fallout that can ironically result from our best (though misguided) intentions. Beyond the library, Eastwood Norris expertly morphs into a pharma company manager, as well as a fellow parent who sees things from a slightly different perspective.
“Bad Books” is part of the National New Play Network’s Rolling World Premiere initiative. Stewards of new plays (and playwrights), NNPN works hard to bring lesser-known voices to the stage. In this instance, their initiative certainly pays off. This is a play that navigates a timely issue with incredible finesse, sharpness, and wit. Rothstein’s writing is fiercely on point. She doesn’t miss a beat—and neither do her characters. That humor so thoughtfully mapped onto this situation seamlessly exists side by side with anger, sadness, and political nuance speaks to both the complexity of this piece and the brilliant simplicity of its nod to, well, humanness.
Of course, with Twyford and Eastwood Norris starring, the play becomes an easy sell—who wouldn’t want to see these ridiculously talented actors hold the stage for 80+ minutes. As The Mother, Twyford embodies that uncanny combination of rage and grief that can be so common to parents desperate to ease the pain associated with whatever their child may be experiencing. Her performance is absolutely stunning, heartbreaking, and mesmerizing all at once. Eastwood Norris carries the lift of playing multiple characters. The unbelievable part, at least for me, was that I had to continuously remind myself that this was in fact one person and not three. Eastwood Norris’s ability to fully embody the character of the moment and do so while coaxing the audience to have an emphatic feeling about that character within just a few short minutes is amazing. I am in awe.
Ryan Rilette’s direction intuits the strengths of these actors and capitalizes on just how good they really are. His sense of how the characters need to move, sound, and interact is perfectly in tune with the sensibilities inherent in the script. It truly is a magical combination. A bit different here for Round House is the in-the-round staging—quite literally as the revolving stage ever so slowly turns throughout the production. Megan Raham’s compelling set design is simple, perhaps because of this revolving component. And Colin K. Bills lighting deftly accentuates the more surprising (if not shocking) twists and turns.
I walked into this show half expecting some sort of quasi-political diatribe against book-banning. While I would have been perfectly happy with that, instead, I saw a deeply riveting play about what it means to be a mother in today’s society, what it means to be a librarian in a culture where books have become blurry, and what it means to be human in a quick-to-anger world where trust is scarce. Without hesitation, this is one of my top three for the season.
Running Time: One hour and 20 minutes with no intermission.
Advisory: Suggestion of suicide, presence of prop gun.
“Bad Books” has been extended through May 4, 2024 at Round House Theatre, 4545 East-West Hwy., Bethesda, MD 20814. For more information and to purchase tickets, please go online.
