The performance of “The Humans” at the Laura Pels theater was great. Its narrative about a family that faces much of the same struggles we all do, was relatable and engaging. I thought it had a shaky start because I could sense the actors’ nerves and they weren’t playing off of each other initially as much as they were just throwing lines into space, but eventually they all seemed to settle in their roles and character relationships and personalities became more defined.
My favorite role was the mother, Deirdre. Her character was so well-written and also well-developed by the actress. She had so much depth, which was evident in the way that she was able to make everyone laugh and carry on as if everything was fine while the audience still saw the subtlety of her pain and insecurities. I found that she was always playing off of other characters, and responding to her fellow actors fully, where as other actors, such as the one playing Brigid, were forcing their emotions at times or not fully responding truthfully.
I also really liked the set, it was simple enough not to distract from the action on the stage but also to allowed for the director to play with a lot the staging, especially pertaining to the scary element. I’m still fascinated by how they got the bowl to drop off the counter. It was clever of them to have so much action happening upstairs that we don’t pay attention to how the bowl drops or when grandma left the couch. The blackout was also great. I must confess that I was absolutely terrified for those few minutes, expecting some terrifying thing to happen at any moment— but really, just like the nightmare, it was only reflective of the anxiety and fear that Erik had about telling his daughters that he cheated on their mother and I thought that was very creative of the playwright.
I thought the tunnel of light they created at the end for Erik to go through was a good way to end the play. It satisfied my expectations as an audience member because it provided closure. Overall I think it was a good play and while some of the characters did have weak moments, they were all well-crafted with strong objectives that translated into actions being played fully every time they interacted with one another. This was by far my favorite Arts in New York City seminar trip; something about theater, I feel if done properly, is more telling or revealing about our humanity. We are able to connect more deeply to a family interaction on stage portrayed by actors than we are to an opera singer lamenting her father’s death. I think other art forms distort and heighten emotions and reality in order to make a point about human nature, where as theater can have the same influence through a simple conversation.
While the play was a great experience my favorite part of the evening was everyone’s reaction to Drew Barrymore, especially Abie’s, who made us all jealous with his selfie. Props to you man for having courage.
Deirdre was also my favorite character! The way she conveyed her emotions and blurted out her jokes was very natural and funny. Whereas some of Brigid’s lines sounded obviously scripted (in my opinion) because of the way she spoke. I definitely agree with you that the play had scary elements. For example, they were all the parts with the banging noises, the broken lights, and the lady at the end. I thought that the play was going to lean to a horror-ish genre, but I also realized that all the frightening events had to do with the dad’s nightmares.