If you are familiar with the indie-theater scene, you already know about Horse Trade Theatre Group’s reputation for presentation of new works and undiscovered talents Under St. Marks. In existence since 2001, Rising Sun Performance Company is aptly named for its development of not just new works, but also aspiring talents. Its ensemble encourages new actors, directors, writers, and artists to collaborate as part of RSP’s bi-annual “Aspire to Inspire” Program. TWISTED is a night of five one-acts, loosely themed on, “perversity of our most basic (and sometimes base) relationships.” With the courtesy of the splash-zone plastic preset under chairs, the audience curiously awaits what elements of “perversity” are in store. As with any night of one-acts, the quality is a mixed bag, but it is of merit that a company harbors the resolution to continue to produce new works in this struggling economy.
The first one-act, Teddy Knows Too Much, by Matt Hanf, thrusts us into a toddler’s complicated world of do and do not. The youth, Billy (played by Peter Aguero), adeptly milestones the developmental change from going potty, to learning spatial relations, to reasoning existential questions of being, and to testing the rational of humanity, ethics, and normalcy. The playwright, Matt Hanf, honestly investigates the functional and nurturing family unit with a serio-comic and whimsical tone. Hanf composites Billy’s inner-monologue with snapshots of the hyperbolic, career-driven parents with communication issues, and an over-achieving older sister. These witty interludes, which connect the psychological dots of Billy’s childhood, transition well and quickly due to the precise direction by Joseph McLaughlin (assistant directed by Cara Liander).
Following the opener, The Kiss, by Mark Harvey Levine, is a prosaic situation comedy about the practices of good kissing among friends. The scene is a simply realized boy confronts girl, friendly flirtation with low conflict and no resolution. It’s a cute failed love story at best.
Head Games, written by Justin Warner and directed by Jason Tyne-Zimmerman, is a farcical parody of Salome, ripe with puns; a true comedy of errors. The practiced cast handles the comedic timing with accuracy and eloquence. Warner’s well-written juxtaposition of vernacular and pop culture references with classical content enables the cast and director to create the world of the play within an already solid textual material. Head Games is appropriately positioned in the middle of the evening, as there is no intermission, and it is high-energy. It ends and you can’t help but chuckle into the next act.
Still smiling from the previous one-act, Nurturing Bond, by Tom Kiesche, opens relatively somberly with an older woman domestically setting a table for two. But, upon closer inspection, something in this world is not quite normal and, without giving anything away, the conflict is revealed through the entrance of the son in his pajamas. Kiesche mundanely establishes the sci-fi grotesque conflict and the audience can’t help but laugh at the uncomfortable, absurdity of the situational irony between the two characters.
Party Girl, by Kitt Lavoie, is another situational comedy about boy meets girl, but girl turns out to be a stripper for his cousin’s bachelor party. Unfortunately, the conflict is one-dimensional and more appropriate for a sketch, rather than a one-act play. The topic is gimmicky and becomes tired quickly. However, the cast performs well with the material.
Cast of note: Alexia Tate, in Teddy Knows Too Much, plays the disconnected Mom with a vivacious flair and exaggerated physical and vocal comedy. She is well coupled with Chris Enright’s clownish Dad, whose facial expressions and vocal tone irreverently (but oh so perfectly humorously) reflect the caricature of the 1950s father figure. Enright also appears in another patriarchal role, as Herod Anitpas in Head Games. He audaciously struts with the commanding presence of nobility. Enright makes bold choices and delivers them with comedic proficiency. Nicole Howard parries Enright’s Herod as Herodias. Howard’s linguistic prowess is evident in her sharp tongue and quick pick-ups as Herodias and as the ear-piercing, demonstrative voice of Billy’s sister, Jenny, in Teddy Knows Too Much. Lindsay Beecher is Salome in Head Games and creates the tortured and spoiled teen princess with flagrant charm.
TWISTED is a fun night of short serio-comedic one-acts. The facile situational comedies will appeal to some, while the parodies, the grotesque, and the ironic will appeal to others. It’s worth the price of admission to see the Rising Sun Performance Company’s aspiring talent, even if you don’t enjoy every one of the five one-acts in the 80minute evening.
