The current mainstage production at the Fine Arts Center explores how we leave an impact and what forging new relationships does to an unchanged life.
“The Roommate” began its run on Feb. 12 at the Fine Arts Center Main Stage and will close on March 1. Written by Jen Silverman, the play is about two very different women living together and experiencing middle age, reinvention and identity.
Silverman is a nonbinary writer who frequently writes about female relationships, and I was excited to see how they explored the deconstruction of the female identity. The play was originally performed in 2015 and gained more recognition with its revival on Broadway’s Booth Theater with Mia Farrow and Patti LuPone. Technical aspects of the show shine. The play is set in the kitchenette of a two-story house and displays depth by featuring a foyer and windows that look out onto a functional side porch. Lighting shows the passage of time, while costumes help exemplify who the characters, Sharon and Robyn, are and how they change over the course of the play.
The Fine Arts Center describes its production as examining “the complexities that arise between two very different women.” The storyline follows female friendship before developing into romantic sexual tension, which can be reduced to a byproduct of friendship. However, this developed early on in the show and continued building to a second-act climax that didn’t equivocate those feelings with friendship, but rather a different kind of bond.
The central question of this show asks, “How do we influence others?” This is explored as ever-curious and persistent Sharon works to understand Robyn, who has a past she seeks to obscure. As Sharon uncovers Robyn’s history, she finds freedom in the lawless way that Robyn has lived. Having recently retired from her marriage, Sharon envies the way that Robyn lives her life and begins to follow in Robyn’s footsteps. Robyn has done things she is not proud of, but Sharon’s excitement pushes the twosome into Robyn’s old life. As the tensions escalate, Sharon’s lack of an internal moral compass becomes evident. Sharon’s newfound freedom comes at the expense of those around her, as she begins to see them as “just some guy,” except for Robyn, whom she continues to view as interesting.
Though the two-person cast may have been narrower, there was still plenty of dialogue from the two women about their relationship. As the characters develop, there is an opportunity to discuss the past relationships that have shaped them, since the discussion of their children seems limited. It is still a good point of contrast to see how each woman raised her child and what that relationship has matured into.
Starting off slow and occasionally awkward, Elsie Santora plays her cards close and strategically shares herself as Sharon begins to pick apart Robyn. Conversely, Susan Dawn Carson explodes into the story, telling her truths with little prompting. Both actors work the aspects of vulnerability and honesty present in the script beyond what is written on the page. Through the obstacles that present themselves, nothing is held back. Robyn’s cold exterior melts away as her business intertwines with Sharon’s, and Santora shows this coming apart as she opens up. The highlight of the show came in Act One, when the two smoke medicinal herbs together. This scene portrays the joy of letting loose around someone you trust and the silliness of being.
All CC students should show up for “The Roommate,” particularly with the free rush tickets provided for Gold Card users. If you enjoy a show with an emotional roller coaster and an ambiguous ending, this show is for you.