Both farcical and unsettling, “Frenzy for Two, or More” attempts to bridge the gap between Theater of the Absurd and artistic drama. Set in the midst of a generic, unspecified revolution, a volatile and ridiculous argument erupts between a man and a woman. The internal and external battles both mirror and influence one another: The couple argues over whether a tortoise or a snail is the same thing, and the strange battle wages on without rhyme or reason. As it builds up in violence, the house, the couple’s relationship and the boundaries between reality and absurdity begin to dissolve.
Harper Joy’s recent production of the play, directed by Visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre Jessica Cerullo, attempts to rectify this confusing yet remarkable play with incredible artistry. Her creative stage directions, as well as the actors’ strong choices, help to introduce this absurd and disturbed world. While the original list of characters includes only the couple, this play provides three, who interchange and mix as the play progresses.
Cerullo also took a big risk with her actors and the characters they portray: Not only did the couples mix during the show, each night the three male and female leads played different parts. In other words, it was literally never the same show twice insofar as the characters are concerned. This gave the show an even more frenzied and intense atmosphere because the actors had to learn more-or-less on the spot how to interact with their respective and ever-changing partners.
The lead male roles, played by junior Trevor Cushman, junior Zach Simonson and first-year Marcial Diaz Mejia, all play up different aspects to the same character, anonymously called “He.” This creates a character that is many-sided and, strangely enough, a representation of an “Anyman.”
The same goes for the female leads: Senior Kelsey Yuhara, sophomore Justis Phillips and sophomore Surabhi Veenapani, who play the same eccentric and contrary “She.” The actors not only appeared comfortable with one another but easily played off of one another’s choices and worked well together, no matter with whom they were.
Junior Devin Petersen’s set design gave the audience an intimate look inside the lives of the characters, opening up the Friemann Stage space, giving the illusion of an actual home, complete with a neighboring hallway and room. Furthermore, the mirrors break, chunks peel off the wall to reveal random shapes of the same items that fall through the ceiling and transparent drips of blood appear on the walls. Creative, funny and thoughtful, Petersen’s design helped make the universe more complex and compelling.
Subtle and artistically driven, “Frenzy for Two, or More” is another fun and challenging play carefully crafted by Harper Joy Theater and the theater department. While difficult to comprehend with its many pieces, Cerullo and the cast and crew of this show put on something very different and enjoyable for the Whitman and Walla Walla community.
