Review: REVOLUTION AT A RED ORCHID THEATRE At A Red Orchid Theatre

Although the title may be bold, Brett Neveu’s world premiere REVOLUTION is a true “slice of life” play. In fact, the Revolution of the title refers to a rather mundane establishment: A hair salon. Co-workers and best friends Puff (Stephanie Shum) and Jame (Taylor Blim) meet in the alley behind the salon to chat, and on the day of the play, to celebrate Puff’s birthday. While Jame is eager to make a big deal of Puff’s special day, the anxiety-ridden Puff seems content to just drink cider in the alley and eat her share of Sour Patch Kids, Hershey’s Miniatures, and Mike and Ikes. When Puff and Jame invite the beleaguered Georgia (Natalie West), an employee at the mall’s nearby Ross, to join them, the evening becomes a meeting of friends old and new. 

It’s not an insult to say that Neveu’s play isn’t about much of anything; it’s just life — and that seems to be precisely the point. In Puff and Jame’s friendship, it’s clear that conversations about anything and everything are par for the course. When Georgia joins the duo, she seems game to mirror that dynamic. It’s often challenging when a playwright introduces characters who are strangers, but the fact that Puff and Jame have an existing relationship and that Georgia is the only newcomer allows Neveu to eschew the usual awkwardness that entails. There are stakes in the relationships because Puff and Jame already have a long-running one. Puff and Jame’s ping ponging between topics both superficial and profound also allow them to let Georgia more easily into the fold. And when I think about the conversations I have with my own friends, I think Neveu really nails that cadence nicely. It’s a satisfying portrait of friendship because REVOLUTION shows how the deepest of friendships can swing from silly to heartfelt in moments. 

This is a “talky” play so it helps that the three actors are great at that. Travis A. Knight’s direction involves a great deal of standing or sitting around Kotryna Hilko’s bare alley set, but it’s to his credit that the play still feels dynamic. Shum and Blim are a delightful yin-and-yang as Puff and Jame. Shum plays out Puff’s anxiety beautifully, as she teeters on the edge of panic in certain moments. She precisely captures the anxious struggle of wanting to keep all that anxiety bottled up but knowing that that’s impossible. Blim has a lighthearted, game-for-anything vibe as Jame. She lets audiences know that Jame is cheerful but realistic. Watching Blim’s face absolutely light up as her Jame tells Puff that celebrations are few and far between so they should embrace Puff’s birthday feels genuine and true. As the bizarre and bewildered Georgia, Natalie West proves quite the comedian. Georgia is the most outsized of the three — and she definitely has some secrets up her sleeve, alongside the strange assortment of items she keeps gathering from her car. Like any studied actor, West understands that maintaining the character’s integrity is important. Georgia might seem off-kilter to audiences, but West lets us know that she believes in what she’s saying — and her struggles. Though it may be Puff’s birthday, it’s clear Georgia’s grappling with a transitional moment of her own. That liminal state leads to a heightened moment about three-quarters of the way through the play that in some ways I saw coming, but I understood Neveu’s desire to have a climatic event. 

REVOLUTION is a meditation on friendship and the search for connection. I appreciate that Neveu’s writing is contained and grounded; it doesn’t stretch too far and Puff, Jame, and Georgia make only the kind of grandiose statements that humans would in real conversations. And after all, who can’t relate to the desire to connect with others and have the kind of best friendship that Puff and Jame share? 

REVOLUTION plays at A Red Orchid Theatre, 1531 North Wells Street, through November 5. Tickets are $35-$45. 

Photo Credit: Evan Hanover

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