BWW Reviews: Take a Worthwhile Trip to 4,000 MILES at Studio Theatre

Leo is a lucky guy. I wish I still had a grandmother to go visit. And I wish my own grandma was as colorful, cute, straight-forward and accepting as his is. Vera could be my grandmother any day.

Vera and Leo are inventions of the gifted playwright Amy Herzog and serve as the central characters in 4,000 Miles.

You do not want to miss 4,000 Miles and you only have until April 28 to get your tickets for the production at the Studio Theatre. My guess is other reviewers, in print and online, will be praising this production just like I am. 4,000 Miles deserves to be a sell-out.

First of all, it's a damn good play, neat and tidy and done up in a single 90-minute act, with no intermission. Leo, 21, has traveled by bicycle thousands of miles to stop by his grandmother's apartment unannounced. As the story unfurls, the dynamics of old, independent Vera and young, independent Leo are slowly revealed.

Herzog has a gift for dialogue, as evident in After the Revolution (where Vera is introduced) and in 4,000 Miles. It was easy to believe every word shared by the unlikely pair of Leo and Vera. I also believed when Vera, in a sign of her advanced age, loses the next words she wants desperately to say. Leo, likewise, drops words and sentences, but when he loses a train of thought, it's likely due to smoking too much weed.

But like a good grandson, he does share his cannabis with his grandma. Marijuana is not the only thing they share. There is a fragile bond between them, since she is an old-school, progressive lefty and he clearly respects her for it. They might share politics, but Vera would prefer he smell like he has clean clothes and a shower.

Yes, Leo is "that" kind of crunchy, granola, nature-loving and free-thinking type: the kind who might have joined one of the Occupy sit-ins, but the call of the open road was too great, so he biked across country with his best friend. The other call he answers is to surprise his widowed grandmother by dropping in for an extended stay.

As played by Tana Hicken and Grant Harrison, Vera and Leo are imminently watchable and wholly authentic. The duo spends nearly every scene together and their dialogue, both spoken and unspoken, display a palpable truthfulness. We buy it all: from the moments when there is an apparent generation gap, to flashes of anger and frustration.

Hicken effortlessly brings off Vera's singular sweet yet direct nature. Her Vera serves as the grounding force for Herzog's play. As crazy as it may sound, her performance goes beyond acting; she is a study in active listening and truthful reaction.

Harrison looks and sounds as if Leo was written for him. He has a connection with the character and he gives his dialogue an appropriate improvisational flair. (Think Keanu Reeves, but a real actor, not a movie star.) Leo has the highest stakes at play and Harrison allows Leo's emotional layers to peel away slowly throughout his scenes with Vera and the other characters.

Also visiting Vera's Greenwich Village apartment - a nicely appointed set design by Studio Theatre veteran Russell Metheny - are Leo's ex-girlfriend and an almost one-night stand. Herzog doesn't give an actress much to work with in the role of Bec but Heather Haney shows a plausible earnestness towards her former love interest, Leo.

Annie Chang, on the other hand, has plenty to work with as Leo's picked up party girl, Amanda. In the midst of a pretty funny play, Chang mines every nuance from the sexy, drunken, flirty, and confused moments Amanda shares with Leo during their brief and embarrassing dalliance.

The scene with Amanda is not just a tacked on comedic release valve; the scene allows Leo to reveal to Vera why he cycled from the West Coast to Manhattan for the impromptu visit. I will offer no spoilers, but the emotional pay-off is huge and seals the deal for the burgeoning relationship and newfound understanding between the central characters.

Herzog's script also quietly looks as how aging affects the aged, family relationships, and facing our own mortality, but you will find no preaching going on here - just a character-driven play that comes to a satisfying conclusion.

Orchestrating the brilliant script and compelling performances in 4,000 Miles is Joy Zinoman. Simplicity and clarity of storytelling is front and center throughout the performance, and we would expect nothing less from the founding artistic director of Studio Theatre.

Zinoman has reassembled collaborators from her past to help bring her solid vision for 4,000 Miles to the stage. Metheny, set designer, Daniel MacLean Wagner, lighting designer, and Helen Huang, costumes, bridge the gap between Studio Theatre's past and present. Lindsay Jones rounds out the contributors with an atmospheric sound design and original score.

4,000 Miles is right at home at Studio Theatre: a crackling good contemporary script, first class actors, and a top notch production. If we gave out stars at Broadway World, I would give this show five out of five.

4,000 Miles at Studio Theatre

By Amy Herzog

Director: Joy Zinoman. Cast: Amanda: Annie Chang; Bec: Heather Haney; Leo: Grant Harrison; Vera: Tana Hicken. Designers: Set - Russell Metheny; Lighting - Dan Wagner; Costumes - Helen Huang; Original Music and Sound Design - Lindsay Jones.

Opened: March 20, 2013; through April 28, 2013

Mead Theatre, Studio Theatre - 1501 14^th St, NW, WDC 20005

Evenings: Tue. - Sun.; matinees Sat. and Sun. Prices: $39 to $72

Tickets and more information? Click here.

Or call 202-332-3300

PHOTO CREDITS: Top Image - TEDDY WOLF

PHOTO CREDITS: Grant Harrison and Tana Hicken in 4,000 MILES - Scott Suchman

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