Review: PEOPLE, PLACES, & THINGS at Speakeasy Stage

Life is full of challenges. It is impossible to make it throughout the day without facing some sort of challenge. It can be as small as you've run out of cream for your morning cup of coffee or as large as you've become addicted to alcohol and/or drugs. In PEOPLE, PLACES, & THINGS, Duncan MacMillan explores what it means to struggle with addiction.

When you walk into the theatre at the Calderwood Pavilion you are aware that you are in a theatre. The stage is fairly bare. There is a large semi-opaque curtain hanging from a truss center stage. Behind the curtain are stations that resemble make-up stations in a dressing room. You see multiple clothing racks with costumes and other objects spread about. In front of the curtain, there is a small desk and two chairs on top of an area rug. It is the set for Chekov's "The Seagull." The play begins with the final scene from The Seagull. It seems like an ordinary production until you realize that one of the actors, Emma (played by Marianna Bassham) seems completely out of it. She is glazed over and completely spaced out. She fumbles with her lines and her movements. She eventually panics and completely stumbles, taking the set with her. There is panic and sudden darkness. When the lights come up we are in the reception area of a rehab hospital. For the next two and a half hours, we follow Emma on her journey to recovery.

The script doesn't hold back with how it wants you to feel. Macmillan has a brilliant balance of comedy and realness in his dialogue and you are truly brought on an emotional rollercoaster.

Of course, a script is only as good as the cast that brings it to life and director David R. Gammons found a perfect group of people to bring this script to life. The cast is led by the incomparable Marianna Bassham. Bassham does an amazing job of bringing Emma to life. She is flawlessly able to show Emma's struggles. Not only her struggle to do what she needs to do, but the struggle of balancing what is the truth and what she wants to be the truth. Another standout from the cast is Nael Nacer who plays the role of Mark. You can tell that Nacer's Mark just wants the best for those around him. He is unselfish and understands that the world does not revolve around him. Nacer's nuances in the character make him feel real and like someone you know. The ensemble of the show was also incredible in their acting and intricacies. Everyone in the cast, aside from Bassham, played multiple roles and each actor brought something different to each character they played. Never once did I question "are they playing character a or b?"

Gammons' staging of this show elevated the actors and the script. One stand-out moment in the staging was in one of the group therapy scenes. The patients were seated in a circle with the therapist at the upstage end and Emma seated at the downstage end with her back to the audience. In the moment you could feel the pressure Emma was feeling as you could see the faces of the other patients all staring in your direction. Gammons was fortunate to have an incredible design team on his side. The set by Jeffery Petersen was simple but effective. He used moveable set pieces to help designate the different areas of the rehab facility Emma was in. The lighting, designed by Jeff Adelberg, was brilliant at helping to set the mood. Anytime Emma was overstimulated or having a withdrawal there would be a really dramatic change in lighting, really helping the audience feel what Emma was feeling. Adelberg and Petersen were joined by designers Gail Astrid Buckley (costumes), David Wilson (sound), and Adam Stone (video) who each added to the story in their own ways but still felt like a cohesive unit.

In all honesty, PEOPLE, PLACES, & THINGS is one of the best pieces of theatre I have seen in Boston in a while. Everything put together makes this show an incredible and moving piece of art. I mean it when I say that everyone should go and experience this work.

PEOPLE, PLACES, & THINGS is being presented by the Speakeasy Stage company now through March 5th at the Calderwood Pavilion at the Boston Center for the Arts. It is produced by Kerry A. Dowling. Adele Nadine Traub serves as Production Stage Manager, with Stephen MacDonald serving as Assistant Stage Manager. For tickets and more information visit speakeasystage.com. Photo by Nile Scott Studios.

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