REBECCA HALE
Reverb Editor
Picture a small play; a tiny play that packs a punch — a production that somehow seems a harmless comedy on the outside, but rips at the audience’s emotional heartstrings internally.
Written by Kenneth Lonergan, “This is Our Youth” premiered last weekend, and nearly sold out all three evenings of its running.
Presented by the Performing Arts Company, “This is Our Youth” was directed by senior BFA acting major Mark Diven, and only featured three actors: Dan Rivera, freshman acting; Kevin Stevens, junior acting; and Joan Cusick, junior acting major.
The production, about two hours long, takes place entirely in Dennis’ (Stevens) Manhattan studio apartment. Lonergan brilliantly creates a complex plot line, even though only two characters are onstage at a time, with the exception of one short scene in which all three are onstage. He does this by incorporating multiple other characters, whom the audience never sees, but rather hears through the context of phone calls that Dennis makes.
The story follows the lives of Dennis, an emotionally unstable bully; Warren, a socially awkward victim; and Jessica, a flighty and unpredictable acquaintance. These characters are the product of parents who were once hippies, now conservatives by product of anti-Vietnam sentiment.
One of the prominent themes in the play is that the impact of the transition of the “free love” culture to its failure influenced not only the generation that experienced it, but that generation’s children, as well.
Dennis is a junkie who lashes out verbally at those he loves when any criticism comes his way. Stevens presented a perfect imitation of this character, pacing around the studio apartment like a tweaking junkie, and bursting in and out of emotional fits just as easily as if a switch were being flipped inside of him. Stevens presented him as a dirty and unpleasant character, who is also in an unhealthy relationship with his girlfriend, whom he screams at over the phone multiple times throughout the play.
Warren is a victim of domestic abuse, as well as someone whose sister was murdered when he was very young. These events have caused him to become an introvert who retreats into his shell every time he receives verbal attacks from Dennis or his father.
In the context of the play, Warren has impulsively stolen a large sum of money from his father and fled home, only to realize how large of an obstacle he must now try to remedy. Rivera portrayed his character just as well as Stevens, though he is less verbal than Warren, through rich body language and facial expressions.
Jessica is self-absorbed and lashes out every time someone presents an opinion that does not match her own. She acts rude and put-off toward Warren one minute, and is laughing and flirting with him the next (much to Warren’s delight). Cusick was able to flawlessly transition from one mood to the next, creating a character that seemed to possess both protagonistic and antagonistic qualities.
The comic relief within the play is more than enough to relieve the discomfort presented by the subtext of the plot; in fact, the play almost seems a comedy at times. Still, this dry humor does not mask the underlying issues, and the play spirals more and more out of control as the plot unfolds.
Dennis manipulates Warren into using the money to buy drugs, and he convinces him that they can make enough profit selling the drugs to replace the stolen money before Warren’s father notices.
Diven was able to utilize a classroom setting to create Dennis’ studio apartment with minimal set pieces. The play took place in Houghton Hall, where the large windows created a realistic backdrop for the apartment. Costumes and props were also very simple, though they worked well for the play.
Given the resources available, Diven chose a fitting play to direct. “This is Our Youth” was also an appropriate play to put on, since most college students are experiencing the same painful transition from youth to adulthood as these characters are. Each character within “This is Our Youth” is multi-faceted and dynamic, and each was portrayed uniquely and professionally by their corresponding actors.
“This is Our Youth” was a beautiful and seemingly simple play that gets under the skin of its audience. It caused the audience to not only enjoy, but ponder and apply its themes to their own lives.