coming of age

New play presents a fateful correspondence

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By John Lyle Belden

There is much to be said for the magic of the theatre, the blurring of space, distance, and communication between characters and to our silent witness, all on the limited confines right in front of us. Thus, our minds easily suspend disbelief, forego the logic that requires more physical and temporal structure expected in cinema or even a novel, all to give us the essence and substance of the story. Put simply, I believe “Wad,” by Keiko Green, could only work on the stage – and the current world premiere production by American Lives Theatre and The New Harmony Project works brilliantly.

Nyce – pronounced “Neese” – (Mollie Murk) is a Ft. Lauderdale teen fascinated with the macabre who finds a program to mail letters to prison inmates on Florida’s Death Row. She selects Jim (Eric Reiberg) and writes to him noting that she has not read about his case beyond being convicted for “double first-degree murder,” that she would rather find out about it from him, from his perspective.  His execution date is five months away.

The black-box confines of the Basile stage in the Phoenix Theatre Cultural Centre are evenly divided between Nyce’s bedroom and Jim’s cell (set design by Matt Mott). Under the direction of Emily Moler, we see Nyce and Jim communicate across the hundred-plus mile distance via balled-up letters thrown across the center line like paper-wads in a classroom (hence the title). What in reality takes days become flowing conversations, complete with mutual-fantasy interactions across the center line. They enact a history lesson, a meet-cute, and even a puppet show. In addition, they each find themselves revealed as lies are discovered and evasions become useless as time grows ever shorter.

Murk nicely embodies the girl at the cusp of adulthood, naively thinking hard truths will come easy. While she is at a turning point at the start of life’s potential, Reiberg gives us a man facing down his end. He is at first indifferent, but finding a non-judgemental friend gives him a cruel dose of hope. Aided by what we learn about his fate through their correspondence, the conclusion is felt more than seen.

While obviously a drama, there is a fair amount of dark comedy, especially in their early interactions – a blend of adolescent sarcasm and genuine gallows humor. Watch closely for deeper elements, such as both characters being Libras – a hint at the scales of Justice, and the fragile sense of balance throughout the narrative.

In all, “Wad” is a fascinating, thought-provoking, and affecting look at two distinct characters, revealing the humanity they share with each other – and us. Performances run through Sept. 28 at 705 N. Illinois St., downtown Indianapolis. Get info and tickets at phoenixtheatre.org.

Exploring the degree we ‘Flex’ to fulfill dreams

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By John Lyle Belden

I am in a unique position to review the play “Flex” by Candrice Jones, presented by Summit Performance Indianapolis at the Phoenix Theatre Cultural Centre. At the time and place of this fictional drama – late 1990s in rural southeastern Arkansas – I was a small-town reporter covering sports in that region. I also grew up in a tiny town where basketball was practically the only school sport, and to have a player noticed at all by college scouts was a miracle.

Starra Jones (Shelby Marie Edwards) is the star point guard of the Plano, Ark., (pronounced “Plain Ol’ Arkansas”) High School Lady Train. The daughter of a promising woman baller from pre-WNBA days, she practices on a packed-dirt court by her home. Fellow senior teammates are Sidney Brown (Maggie Kryszyn), who recently moved from California, bringing with her attention from Division-1 scouts; Cherise Howard (Marissa Emerson), a devout newly-minted youth minister who wants baptism to wash away her feelings for…; Donna Cunningham (Enjoli Desiree), who will use an academic scholarship to escape small-town life; and April Jenkins (Kelli Thomas), whose unplanned pregnancy will likely get her benched by no-nonsense Coach Pace (Alicia K. Sims) just as the Train are State Tournament bound.

Starra was brought up in a take-charge ethos as powerful as her talent, calling the shots in a traditional 1-3-1 offense. Coach finally feels, with two star players in a tightly knit squad, she can run the “Flex” offense she has developed for years. This calls for frequent passing to overwhelm opponents – a lot more sharing than Starra is used to, on top of seeing Sidney’s stats and status rise. Meanwhile, April has a plan to get back on the court, involving a secret road trip across the Mississippi River. Desperate measures are being taken, putting these girls’ futures and perhaps even their souls at risk.

Directed by A.J. Baldwin, the play excellently portrays both the closeness of small-town life, developing tight bonds and pride, and the desperate urges of youth to kick the dirt off your feet for good, getting out to find bigger opportunities far away from Plano. These five mesh as a team and both fight and support one another like sisters. Edwards, our principal narrator, gets much of the focus (like her character) but this squad all give brilliant performances, bringing out their dreams, struggles, and pain for us all to share – making triumph all the more sweet.

Sims mainly plays the mentor but adds layers as Coach Pace also finds she, too, has lessons to learn. The title comes to mean more than a basketball strategy, as all figure out when in life one should – and shouldn’t – be flexible.

I was also impressed that this story was not critical of the role of evangelical Christianity in the girls’ lives, letting it be a source of comfort and even healing in Charise’s unsure yet faithful hands.

SMALL SPOILER: I did have one concern about the script, in that a stumble in the tournament, while essential to the plot, did not eliminate them from the Finals. Please allow some dramatic license here.

Inventive set design by Maggie Jackson puts a basketball court flowing into a rural highway at the center of the black box Basile Stage, with seating on both sides giving a good close view to all. Stage managers are Becky Roeber and Chandra Lynch, who also appear as referees.

With a real hoop at regulation height, the most impressive aspect was how well-practiced the actors were, as there are a number of moments in which shots had to be made. At our performance, every swoosh was right on cue.

Experience small-town hoop dreams with “Flex,” through Feb. 2 at 705 N. Illinois St., Indianapolis. Get info and tickets at phoenixtheatre.org.

In new drama, girls seek meaning in naive ‘game’

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By Wendy Carson

Growing up is hard. Add to this living in a small town with only an abusive single parent, and an overactive imagination. Such is the situation of Rae and Molly, two best friends struggling to save each other from their collective traumas in “The JonBenèt Game,” a drama by Tori Keenan-Zelt presented by American Lives Theatre at IF Theatre.

The production is part of a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere, directed by Jenni White who has been in workshop with the playwright to develop it first for Indianapolis (including a reading last year). In the coming months it will premiere with other companies across the United States as part of this new work’s development.

Remembered in flashback by adult Rae (Molly Bellner), the 12-year-old girls fantasize about running away to Chicago (their ideal big city) and Molly (Cass Knowling) becomes obsessed with the 1996 murder of six-year-old JonBenèt Ramsey, “the most famous Cold Case of our time.” Studying a 1999 book on the case like a bible, the two act out various scenarios of how the young girl lived and died. When their at-first harmless play-acting takes a dark turn, they are ripped apart and reviled throughout the town.

Rae is now an adult, trying to redeem herself as a guidance councilor at the Christian school she attended during that period. However, her life is again thrown into chaos by Hazel (Knowling), Molly’s adolescent daughter who has found her mother’s book on the Ramsey case.

Senior counselor Miss Kay (Lynne Perkins), whose decision it was to give Rae this chance at redemption, offers to take Hazel as her own charge, but life intervenes and Rae forms a bond with Hazel, who begins her own obsession, her own turn at the “game.”

At the crux of all this turmoil lies an all-important question: If you had a chance to relive one of the most defining moments of your life, knowing the costs, would you do anything differently?

In compelling performances, Bellner and Knowling present complex troubled characters. Bellner is our bridge between generations, unsure of her way at both ends and striving to understand. Rae, while seeking to help her best friend and that friend’s daughter in any way she can, finds that the physical scars she hid from her mother’s attacks are not nearly as painful as the monster she harbors deep within herself. Knowling portrays girls on the edge, frantically searching – Molly desiring a route to escaping her mentally-abusive mother, Hazel seeking answers in the shadow of her own Mom, perhaps hidden in a well-worn true-crime paperback.

Perkins gives us the adult in the room, ironically proving powerless as the forces of trauma overtake innocence – portrayed further in a moment as JonBenèt’s despairing mother.

Note this work comes with content warnings for suicide and self-harm, as well as the titular killing.

An exploration of grief, trauma, and dealing with coming of age or its denial, “The JonBenèt Game” runs through Jan. 26 at IF, home of IndyFringe, 719 E. St. Clair St., Indianapolis. For tickets, go to indyfringe.org.

Diving into Div(X)Fest

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By John Lyle Belden

How does one describe the ongoing process by which a stage production comes to be? It’s a bit crude to say “how the sausage is made,” as that is just too messy an image to place on creating art. On the other hand, saying its “how the magic is made” – aside from likely being trademarked by Disney – glosses over just how productively messy the journey can be. Writers like myself (and Wendy) use these terms to impress on the reader and likely patron that this work is not finished, but still worth a look which lends an insight into the labor of love (emphasis on both) plays, musicals, et al, truly are.

So, I’ll just say that IndyFringe’s annual Div(X)Fest (formerly Diva Fest) is our witness to the base materials our creators spin into theatre gold. (I think that works.) This year’s edition, again celebrating the talents of women (as well as trans and non-binary folx), features readings of three new works. One day remains, Sunday, June 9, starting at 2:30 p.m. in the IndyFringe theatre, 719 E. St. Clair St., downtown Indianapolis. Tickets are pay-what-you-can. Info at indyfringe.org.

Reviewing in reverse order of presentation, these plays are:

“The Sleepover,” I mention first because it is the closest to completion, planning its world premiere at the 2024 IndyFringe Festival in August. It is a unique collaboration begun earlier this year among five women who also perform in this “coming of age dramedy.”

Christine Gordon (as Alexis), Emily Worrel (Rowan), Natalie Fischer (Jessica), Samantha Hines (Chloe), and Wilhelmena Dreyer (Sydney) are 14-ish girls gathering for their annual (for all but Rowan, who is new to town) end of school year sleepover at Alexis’ house. There is a sense of transition, mainly signaled by moving on to high school in the fall, which has the hostess especially meticulous in her planning.

There is tension among them practically from the start, especially after Sydney finally arrives and they engage in their traditional game of Truth of Dare, “Kessler Road Rules.” Along the way we find hidden secrets, insights into true feelings, and hints of the presence of a monster they thought they had only made up – all magnified through the everything’s-extreme perspective of adolescence.

As others noted at one performance, although all five women contributed to the creation and writing of this play – from exploratory conversations and exchanging basic ideas to fleshing out characters. their relationships, and what they say and do – the pieces have melded together in what feels like a single narrative voice. They admit it did feel a bit like they were school friends who shared a deep bond in this process.

This should generate a lot of buzz going into this year’s Fringe, and we can’t wait to see how their creepy cryptid actually comes to life.

“The Silent Supper” by Kaitlynn McShea is a work of subtle horror in which an older woman sits by a ruined table, struggling to remember what happened before “the fire came.” In this reading, directed by Christine Gordon, Wendy Brown portrays the woman, exhausted by nightmares as every sweet memory “never goes right,” as well as the growing buzz of insects. Each remembrance is enacted by a foursome of local actors (I don’t have names at the moment; may fill in if I get them later) who give us some insight into their lives – presuming the one remembering is a reliable narrator. This short work does well in building suspense, reminiscent of Stephen King at his best. It gives Brown a good role to work with, portraying a troubled soul who pulls on our empathy.

“On the Rag Dolls” by Allison Fradkin starts the day’s entertainment, directed by Mira Cassidy, as a trio of young women (again, names unavailable) play three edge-of-puberty besties on their own “Casual Friday” sleepover. However, this scene is a satirical comedy with entendres and puns coming at you with the pace of a hit sitcom, expressed by girls who barely, if at all, get the subtexts (still, you know tweens talk like that). The trio are apparently all in the same hardcore Evangelical Protestant community, though only one goes to the Christian Academy rather than public school, so talk of the future is of boys they will marry and the children they will have (though sex is gross), as well as if their just-started periods are “the curse” or a blessing. – “Men-ses the day!” one girl resolves. – This work in progress is hilarious and shows lots of potential; after-show talkbacks allow us to give Fradkin ideas on where to take this story (as with McShea above).

We extend a big thanks to IndyFringe for hosting this event and their continued engagement in the development of local talent and new works.