Wrecks

Instead of watching the Super Bowl my mom and I saw Wrecks directed and written by Neil LaBute--a production highly recommended by one of my fellow theatre loving friends.

We entered the small theatre and saw two small benches, two potted plants and a coffin with a photo of a woman and a large bouquet of flowers. The play started with Ed Carr, the main character, describing the beautiful life he and his wife shared together. LaBute's writing was personal, sincere and refreshing all at the same time.

One of my favorite parts was that Ed Carr constantly referred to himself talking in the other room. Therefore, the Ed Carr we were watching perform was actually in the other room delievering the eulogy, so we were listening to an internal monologue going on in the back of his mind. The size of the second stage at the Geffen Theatre in Westwood, CA served this performance very well since it was in the round and didn't have more than 100 seats. I felt as if the entire theatre was Ed Carr's mind, and we were inside for 80 minutes simply listening to what was going on. Picking this apart entertained me for the first hour, and then I was ready to leave and just accept that it was an interesting insight into a mourning man's experience with the love of his life.

Then the entire play changed.

LaBute expertly introduced an unexpected and exciting twist. When I left the theatre I got that beautiful theatre high that makes me love life and performance. LaBute's writing took the audience on an amazing ride--from heartwarming love story dealing with real accounts of the challenges of marriage and death, to a piece commenting on the definition of marriage and love as a whole using ancient Greek influence. The revelation at the end was foreshadowed, but it was as if the audience did not want to believe it. The play sunk deep into the audience members, which was obvious from our audible gasps and built up tension that appeared once the shocking suspicion was confirmed.

This play was so powerful because of its ability to draw the audience in and then mess with our minds, while it still had us under its reins. Theatre should do this, it should shock, challenge and make us question and analize what we think we know so well or so much about. I loved this play, Ed Harris was amazing and I can't wait to hopefully read/see more of Neil LaBute's works.

Good thing I changed my major.