Review: Wilbury Theatre Delivers Raw and Real DRY LAND

DRY LAND is a play that is both shocking and probably resonant with more people that one would necessarily think. Themes of life, death, friendship and ambition are woven together to create a snapshot of life that feels incredibly real and intimate. It's a play intended to challenge the audience and make them feel uncomfortable, especially considering the young ages of the main characters and the writer Ruby Rae Speigel.

The action takes place in a High School girls' swim team locker room. After the frenzy of swimmers coming in, changing and rushing out, we're left with Ester, played by Julia Bartoletti and Amy played by Andrea Reid. They're an unlikely pairing. Amy is the quintessential Mean Girl type with pink streaks in her hair and a judgemental sneer, and Ester the more earnest, new girl who seems thrilled that someone popular is paying attention to her. Of course, Amy has a more bizarre and upsetting reason for seeking out Ester's friendship--she needs a friend and confidante to punch her in the stomach, procure laundry detergent and execute any other number of schemes to cause the miscarriage of the baby she's carrying.

It's truly unsettling to watch because such a frank and calculated look at what to do with an unplanned and unwanted pregnancy when you're a senior in High School is rarely something most people think about, or want to think about, and Spiegel's script doesn't pull any punches. There are also near-constant reminders in the dialogue of the age of the characters, should one be trying to forget that aspect of the production. Amazingly, it doesn't come off as shock for the sake of shock, but actually an emotional journey that ends up showing that even someone who puts up a front of indifference, may be hiding more than she reveals.

Andrea Reid as Amy does an excellent job taking on the mantle of High School Queen Bee. She and Ester have a genuine friendship when no one else is around, but the second another cool girl shows up, Reba, played by Sarah Leach, Amy immediately starts to throw Ester under the bus and act as if she is just a hanger-on rather than the sole emotional support Ester actually has been throughout. Julia Bartoletti beautifully captures Ester's uncertainty and trepidation, but also shines in her moment to step up and take the lead. The two characters embark on the most intimate and raw journey two friends can take together, but in the end, like so many High School friendships, it seems like their time together will just be a fuzzy memory. Trauma brings people together, but it also forces them apart.

Considering that this play is so rooted in female relationship dynamics, it would be curious to get a male perspective as to whether or not the events that unfold are as affecting. Certainly the age of the author is apparent in that this play could perhaps be a bit tighter and better structured, but the rawness and messiness of it is also a big part of what ultimately give it its emotional heft, and the teenage characters sound like actual teenagers rather than a throwback to what adults vaguely remember that time being like. Even having never gone through what these characters do, the immediacy of the experience--the intimacy of the setting, pulls the audience into the moment and leaves them unsettled and raw. The rising action culminates in a scene that is certainly uncomfortable, but then unfortunately meanders its way a little too long to the ending.

The set places the audience inside that locker room, right on top of the action, almost like another teammate hiding around the corner. We may never see the water of the pool these girls love, but it's mimicked by the cerulean lockers, the wave effect on the the background screens and the offstage splashing. A chlorine air freshener would absolutely convince the audience that there's a lap pool around the corner.

DRY LAND is uncomfortable to watch, there's no denying that, but it also says a lot of things that need to be said. It's a compelling glimpse into an experience that most will not have to go through, but should in no way be discounted for those who do. In our current political climate, this play, for all it's flaws, is something people should experience. Art has the power show us other worlds with all their messiness and hopefully, shine a light on secrets we never talk about.

DRY LAND is showing September 17-October 3 at Wilbury Theatre Group, 393 Broad St, Providence RI.

Performances Thursday-Saturday ad 7:30, Sundays at 2pm.

Tickets $25 (Student and Senior discounts available) at www.thewilburygroup.org

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