Review: A CASE FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD at Dezart Performs

A Case for the Existence of God by Samuel D. Hunter, directed by Michael Shaw at Dezart Performs begins with Ryan (Jacob Alden Roa) looking for a loan to reclaim 12 acres of land, just a portion of what his family owned 90 years ago that was sold off piece meal.

Ryan was a popular boy in high school who hid his broken home life. The basics are all he seems to have taken away from school. But he’s thoughtful and loving. He has big emotions, not big words. His desire to own a piece of his family’s history to pass on to his daughter feels like a bid to rearrange the past to give her the strong family ties that skipped his parents’ generation. 

Ryan’s daughter goes to the same daycare as Keith’s daughter, Willa. Keith (Dennis Renard) is a mortgage broker - manna from the heavens for Ryan. Keith, a gay black man fostering a baby girl he hopes to adopt, is all about the words. He’s erudite, kind, and pretentious - the last of which he acknowledges and wears like a badge. He’s college educated and had big plans for his life, but instead returned to his hometown to work as a mortgage broker.

Twin Falls, Idaho is a town with a population counting a little bit more than Palm Springs. However the ratio of gay to straight is even smaller than black to white in Twin Falls. As Keith and Ryan forge a friendship, Keith acknowledges the chances of romantic love in this town for him are slim, but as long as he has his daughter, he’s good. 

And because this is a very Joban tale, everything goes wrong, and not in a madcap way. It’s very dramatic with some occasional comedic relief, a well-crafted play that manages to punch you in the sore spots while showing you the meaning of love. It’s not romantic love, it is much bigger than that. And although there is great sadness in the play, Hunter gives us a hopeful ending; that what they endured may have just been worth it in the long run.

Renard and Roa are both very thoughtful and skilled actors, and with Shaw’s direction the audience is perched like a fly on the wall as they build their relationship while struggling to hold onto the families that mean so much to them. Eventually they learn to trust each other, even when thoughtless deception creeps in to muddy the waters. It seems no matter how hard you try to make things right, just like with the parable of Job, there are disasters around every corner. 

Jimmy Cuomo’s set appears as a simple, somewhat boring office space that doubles for whatever it needs to be at the moment. There is a surprising set change almost near the end that kinda took my breath away with its ingenuity. As always, Dugger’s sound design was quite enjoyable.

Technicals are solid and never get in the way of what is happening on the stage. This is not about flashy sets, or lights - the play is very much the thing. Scene changes are swift repositionings in near blackouts; all well designed by Rick Bluhm. Very nice teamwork. 

Speaking of teamwork, this isn’t the first time Renard and Roa have worked with Shaw (Choir Boy and The Garbologists respectively), but to my knowledge it’s the first time they have worked together under his direction. The result is kinda magical. Shaw always finds the right moments for his actors to shine and in this production Renard and Roa are damn near Sirius in intensity. 

Renard's Keith is equal parts kind, cynical, and secretive. When it comes to work, he gleefully throws out statistics for Ryan to digest, but unless you’re in the mortgage business it’s all a nightmare of numbers and words. But Renard is having a blast confounding us with it. And when it gets emotional Renard let's us in for a peek or two until he feels safe. It's a very fine performance.

Roa’s got a real knack for portraying likable guys. He did it in Garbologists, and he's done it again with Ryan. We feel joy when he talks about his daughter, and his pain when he f's everything up. His Ryan is humble, and quite clueless when it comes to the workings of the the world. 

After seeing A Bright New Boise and now A Case for the Existence of God I am a fan of Hunter's work. I am sorry I was unable to stay for the Q&A after as I would have liked to ask about the ending. It's an epilogue, and while it does tie things up in a pretty-ish bow, it’s not a conceit I am sure works. At least it didn’t for me. Felt a bit "stuck on" but in the long run, it doesn’t matter. It’s a good solid drama that will break your heart, then baste-stitch it back together.  

Recommended. 

A Case for the Existence of God by Samuel D. Hunter at the Pearl McManus Theater in the historic Palm Springs Woman’s Club runs through March 10. Tickets available here.

DezartPerforms website: https://dezartperforms.org/ 

*Photography by David A. Lee

Michael Shaw … Director/Producer

Clark Dugger … Producer/SoundDesign

Dennis Renard … Keith

Jacob Alen Roa … Ryan

Paul James Tenaglia … Production Stage Manager

Jimmy Cuomo … Set Design

Rick Bluhm … Lighting Design

Emma Bibo … Costume Design

Tom O’Brien … Technical director

Edward Anguiano … Props Master

 

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