If you think anyone is sane, you just don’t know enough about them…… Christopher Moore
What is accomplished here with bare bones space and set is nothing short of a miracle. Billed as a comedy, Picture Ourselves in Latvia, is that, and much, much more. It is a perceptive study of people and situations and the complications therein. It is the impossibility of categorizing people as either sane or insane. It is a love story and a story of human behavior.
It is due to the remarkable abilities of writer Ross Howard, director Sarah Norris and an incredibly talented cast that what could have turned into a collection of caricatures is completely believable every step of the way.
For the most part it takes place (except for one remarkable set transformation) in a psychiatric ward with patients and staff often appearing to exchange positions. The insane becoming the sane and the sane becoming what could be defined as the insane.
Christian Ryan as Dr. Rupert, the self-centered psychiatrist who may or may not care about his patients, has, perhaps, the biggest challenge in creating a realistic character and he does so with total success. Nurse Whitehall, portrayed by Amy Lee Pearsall, gains our sympathy and understanding as a woman doing her best to manage her emotions.
Each of the three patients run the gamut of actions and reactions and each role is extremely demanding. All three actors do an exceptional job of meeting the demand. Anna grows from a shy young woman who is nearly unable to speak into a compassionate woman capable of expressing herself. It is not a simple transformation, but Dana Benningfield accomplishes it beautifully. Martin, the childlike patient who reveals an unexpected intelligence and perceptiveness is made totally real by Christopher Daftsios. Andy Nogasky skillfully depicts Duncan, a fearful man with ideas and emotions he is unable to communicate.
Oliver is responsible for “protecting” the ward’s occupants. He is the tough guy and disciplinarian who is also given to telling stories featuring himself as the hero and offering advice on life and love to the patients. Gregory James Cohan makes him real and scary.
It is a fascinating cast of characters excellently portrayed by a consistently remarkable cast. All are believable and convey the all too human dichotomy of good and bad.
Michael O’Connor (Lighting Design), Kyle C. Norris (Sound Design) and Samantha Lind (Costume Design) all lend their considerable talents to the authenticity of the production.
Photos by Hunter Canning
Picture Ourselves in Latvia
Presented by the New Light Theater Project
Access Theater
1380 Broadway (two blocks south of Canal).
Through Saturday, August 9, 2014
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