Review: World Premiere ALL MY DISTANCES ARE FAR Shares Teen Sessions with School Therapist

As a former high school teacher who started an alternative program for students who had dropped out, I participated in counseling troubled teens in learning how to deal with challenging circumstances in their lives, be it with parents, siblings, friends, or the desire to find love and respect from that special someone. It's especially difficult when a teen is also dealing with emotional or physical disorders or abuse. And what happens to a foster teen when she ages out of the system? What happens to an adolescent boy with Asperger's when he falls in love? What happens to a Straight-A student who is being sexually molested?

In Leda Siskind's world premiere play ALL MY DISTANCES ARE FAR we meet all these characters and others as they confide to the psychotherapist who sees them at their urban high school. Through each of their monologues, the audience becomes the silent confidant - as well as the witness to the therapist herself - as each teenager grapples with his or her struggle by the end of the school year.

Featured in the cast are Judah Benaim, Hillary Freedman, Sophie Labelle, Taylor Luke, Lital Peykar, Briana Price, and Chris Vickers-Rynecki, each of whom give a fully realized and authentic character portrayal, allowing us to become really concerned for their welfare as their stories unfold.

Lital Peykar portrays Francine, a seventh grader and the youngest character in the show She rambles a bit about her mother's business of showing Huskies at dog shows, but her real focus is on her parents' divorce and Dad's new young girlfriend who she fears will replace her in his heart. As such she acts out by stealing things, a bad habit she thinks will brings her family back together when she is arrested and both show up to be with her at the police station. Peykar's bright pink outfits cannot hide her breaking heart which she shares through her nervous behavior to the point of you wanting to get up and just give her a hug.

Chris Vickers-Ryneck plays Wade, a tenth grader struggling with Asperger Syndrome, generally considered to be on the "high functioning" end of the Autism spectrum. Affected children and adults have difficulty with social interactions and exhibit a restricted range of interests and/or repetitive behaviors. As Wade shares his all-encompassing hobby of studying classic Science Fiction movies, he attempts to work on his lack of social skills after meeting the first girl to show any interest in him at all. Your heart will break as his inability to deal with emotionally difficult social situations (bullying) causes him to act inappropriately and lose the girl.

Judah Benhaim portrays Mateo, a tenth grader suppressing the physical abuse being thrust upon him by his ultra-smart and perfect older cousin. Knowing no one will believe him if he confesses, especially not his priest, poor Mateo hates himself for being so weak and powerless. Benhaim's revelation to his therapist is heart-wrenching, and delivered with exceptional insight into the self-hate that colors everything in Mateo's world. When his confession causes his family to fall apart, it's very apparent his new struggle to deal with hating himself even more for what he has done to his entire family will break your heart. Have Kleenex handy.

Taylor Luke portrays Joe, an eleventh grader who seems to be angry with the world and often does not attend classes. He just sluffs it off as no big deal. Inherently intelligent, Joe never quite admits what's going on at home, and chooses to hide behind his hoodie, ear buds and sunglasses. When he finally reveals how ill his grandmother is and how much he does not want her to die, Luke reaches down into his soul to share Joe's loneliness and deep fear of being alone in the world. Luke shows us the tough demeanor is really a shield to his breaking heart.

Hillary Freedman portrays Marcy, and overweight twelfth grader who considers herself a great poet, comparing herself to Sylvia Plath and other great writers who have committed suicide. Her beautifully artistic soul is often hurt by others who mock her size and goth appearance. A vicious trick regarding a boy who she thinks in interested in meeting her causes Marcy into a tailspin, causing her to cut her wrist. When she rolled up her sleeve to show off her handiwork, there were audible gasps in the audience. Such was the reality of her character presentation. Freedman's very physical delivery of her lines will make you forget to notice her size and focus on the lost soul in front of you just needing to be understood, appreciated and loved.

BriAnna Price's wild-haired Ruby is a very mature twelfth grader who has been in the foster care system since she was 3 months old. Having been moved around too many times in her life has caused Ruby to turns to alcohol and drugs to dull her emotional pain. Price's remarkable portrayal definitely lets us see the maturity Ruby possesses as well as her fear about what to do with her life when she turns 18 and is forced out of the system. Will she decide to run away with the band member she has met or seriously consider checking out the local college offering her a scholarship? Her indecision does not cause her to start drinking again, but her descent into hard drugs is certainly understandable when having to deal with the realities of life on your own at such a young age. She is the one I rooted for the most.

Sophie Labelle rounds out the cast as the very young School Therapist whose shares with the audience her own emotional struggles in dealing with such a wide array of students into whose lives she has been thrown. Her portrayal will make you wonder how any student could make progress with a therapist so unsure of her own abilities to know how to communicate any way to make emotional progress. When she finally admits we are all just trying to make it through life the best we can, even though the distances are far, a bit of hope makes it worth fighting for. Surely she knows how to communicate that with her students who will remember lessons learned in her office. As will you.

ALL MY DISTANCES ARE FAR is Written and Directed by Leda Siskind, is produced by David Hunt Stafford at Theatre 40, 241 So. Moreno Dr., Beverly Hills, CA. 90212. Free parking is available in the Beverly Hills High School parking structure next to the theater. Performances continue through August 24 on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday at 8pm. General admission tickets are $25 and may be purchased online at www.theatre40.org. For additional information: (310) 364-3606

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