Rep Lab plays ponder stay-or-go decisions
Short shows feature fresh talent
In Erica Saleh’s “Life” — one of 10 short plays in this year’s Rep Lab, annually showcasing the emerging theater artists who’ve spent the year working at the Milwaukee Repertory Theater — two teens are playing the iconic board game suggested by Saleh’s title.
Laura (Gia Erichson) couldn’t be happier with things as they are (she’s also winning). Julie (Christie Coran) wonders whether her future requires traveling such a well-worn path, dutifully marrying and having kids while slouching toward death with the most money and the biggest toys. Maybe she needs new friends. Maybe she should leave this game and play her own.
Many of the pieces unveiled during Thursday’s opening night performance played variations on this theme.
Should we stay the course, playing it safe while standing by friends and decisions even when they no longer feel right? Or should we be true to our heart and follow our dreams, even when that means leaving behind all we’ve known and loved?
In G. Flores’ “The Coyote Stratagem,” Vicki (Kat Moser) makes the painful decision to leave her longtime partner (Candace Thomas), salvaging memories of the good times before everything curdles. In Gabriel Jason Dean’s poetic “Pigskin,” William (Darrington Clark) wonders whether football and old friendships can survive his realization that he’s gay.
In David Ives’ “The Blizzard” — the night’s best piece — Neil (Clark) and Jenny (Coran) await the arrival of Neil’s brother and his wife, for a weekend in the country. Vaguely bored with their lives and each other, they get much more adventure than they’ve bargained when a couple they don’t know (Jesse Bhamrah and Moser) show up instead.
Creepy and fun, “The Blizzard” also suggests how readily we become isolated from those we love, while asking whether we cling to them anyway, hunkering down during life’s storms rather than braving the unknowns awaiting beyond the door.
If we instead learn to see things fresh, even the familiar can become strange and wonderful.
In Adam Peltzman’s “Bedfellows,” John Adams (Tanner Medding) learns to better appreciate longtime political ally Ben Franklin (Matt Frye).
And in Matthew Lopez’s delightful “Alien Monster Bowling League,” we travel to the Bay View Bowl and meet two of the monsters from the eponymous video game. Taunted by an alien (a hilarious Clark), Hubbard (Frye) has lost his bowling mojo, until his loving partner (Erichson) restores his faith — underscoring the value of their longstanding relationship.
Now in its seventh year, the wildly popular Rep Lab has itself become a familiar friend, annually offering a tantalizing look at theater’s future. But the Lab could take a cue from this year’s theme: Many of the selections this time play it safe, taking few formal or thematic risks. In theater as in life, we need to challenge ourselves to experiment. That’s what labs are for. “The Rep Lab” continues through April 17 at the Stiemke Studio, 108 E. Wells St. Some performances are sold out. For tickets, visit milwaukeerep.com. For a ranking and capsule reviews of all ten plays, go to TapMilwaukee.com.