- OTHER MEDIA
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- SF Bay Guardian December 5, 2007 (Robert Avila)
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- RIPE Theatre's cleverly staged new play features full-size chalkboards
on three walls and a broken yellow highway line running straight out of
the proverbial fourth. Seemingly, it takes place no place, thus attempting
to capture something very specific but elusive. Sitting center stage in
a fluffy recliner and stroking a cat, a woman undergoes examination by
surrounding unidentified technicians: a therapist (Chida Chaemchaeng),
a dentist (Noah Kelly), and a secretary or scribe (Liz Roddy). Soon these
figures develop into more specific ones from her past and may not be there
at all. Written by RIPE cofounder Kelly and his mother Val Kelly, The Necessity
of Hank doesn't so much chronicle as crack open the intertwined destinies
of an accidental mother (Kerry Gudjohnsen) and her accident-prone son (Ryan
Max Wilkes). Directed by Amanda Ortmayer, the action unfolds like a psychotic
episode, jumbling into fleeting but vivid form a series of seemingly random
memories, perspectives, emotions, and postures. The looseness of the narrative
is a mixed blessing, resulting in a static quality despite the continual
upheaval on stage. But the jarring design and quirky humor throughout nonetheless
lead to an anxious, slow-dawning poignancy.
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