Review: Play ‘Or,’ production: USU theatre brings humor to stage
Between 10-second quick changes, eight-minute rambling monologues, threesomes and murder, Utah State University’s production of “Or,” was absolutely hilarious and truly phenomenal. Rated the movie equivalent of R, the show brought edgy, adult humor to USU’s Black Box Theatre.
The play was written by Liz Duffy Adams and premiered Off-Broadway in 2009. Through a mix of modern and older dialogue and slang, it tells the story of Aphra Behn, a spy-turned-first-female-playwright in 17th century England.
The first thing that stood out to me about USU’s production was the setting. In the beginning, while Aphra is in prison after a mission overseas that went horribly wrong, the stage consisted of just a desk and white curtains. It emphasized the importance of writing right away, as that was the only focal point of furniture.
However, as Aphra left prison and the play shifted to highlight her new home in London, stagehands revealed the set behind the white curtains in a dramatic pull. Candlelight and shelves of books filled the scene, giving it an old-England feel.
Now that she’s free, Aphra has written a few plays but is on the brink of her big break, as long as she can produce a play in one night to meet the deadline of London’s biggest theater company.
Seems easy enough. Well, surprise, it isn’t because the night she finds this out is also the night actress Nell Gwynne comes over, and Aphra is finding it hard to resist her charms. The two fall in love, which is further complicated by the fact that Aphra’s former lover William Scott flees exile, and when the two reunite that same night, he reveals there is a plot to murder King Charles II in the morning. William, ever the double agent, may or may not be lying about his role in this plot.
No matter. Aphra can hold off on being with Nell for one night and still have time to write her play and apparently solve treason. It’ll be fine. Except she’s actually been in a secret relationship with the king this whole time, and who’s that knocking on her door? Of course, Charles himself.
As Aphra attempts to keep her relationship with the king secret, tries to figure out the plot behind his murder and works to both keep William hidden and figure out how to earn him a royal pardon, she also tries to romantically connect Nell and Charles so the three can be in a relationship together. To top it off, she has to write an award-winning, career-defining play in one night. It’s safe to say the play is nothing short of chaos.
Despite the play consisting of seven characters, it only hosts three actors, leading to the quickest costume changes I’ve ever seen. I kid you not, Jonah Newton switched from a half-naked, robe-draped costume as Charles into a wigless, tunic-and-boots-outfit to play William in no more than 10 seconds, appearing in a completely different spot on the stage. The actor also played the jailor in the beginning of the play, showcasing his range of acting ability.
Marin Robinson, who played Nell, was full of exciting costume changes as well, as she switched from the actress to Aphra’s handmaid to Lady Davenant, the theater’s representative, all in the course of two minutes. As Lady Davenant, she delivered an exceptional monologue of probably eight minutes long, leaving barely any room for breathing. Her characterization in each of these roles was incredible — at first, I couldn’t even tell they were played by the same person.
Mia Gatherum as Aphra tied the whole production together. Through her breathtaking stage presence, consistently scrambling to write lines in her play and humorous timing as the audience realized along with her the severity of everything happening, it was impossible to take your eyes off her.
Not only was this play humorous because of the circumstances, but the writing was so funny. There were so many one-liners that had the audience roaring, and there was never a dull moment.
It was so much fun to watch a production with three very talented actors. They each brought something so fresh and compelling to the stage, and the chemistry between the three made for a stunning performance.