By JULES SHINKLE
BG Independent News
Well, you’ve done it. Kids graduated, book club established, husband out of the picture. You’ve navigated the twists and turns of life and figured out who you really are. Having found yourself, the objective now is to coast with what is known, comfortable, and safe. Opportunities to change simply don’t come around these days – right?
Actors Collaborative Toledo (ACT) presents “The Roommate,” a two-woman play by Jen Silverman. Directing the production is Victoria Zajac. Performances are being held at Trinity Episcopal Church, 316 Adams Street in downtown Toledo. The show runs this weekend (May 15-17) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday.
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The production features Jennifer Nagy Lake as Sharon and Thea Grabiec as Robyn. Lake and Grabiec feel at ease in their characters, their on-stage dynamic always natural and loose. Though their characters have very different temperaments, the actors do a great job making the relationship believable.
Sharon is a recent divorcee, a long-time resident of Iowa, and the mother of a child who really ought to visit home more. She’s anxious about everything, especially her new roommate situation.
Robyn has just moved in from the Bronx, immediately putting Sharon on her back foot. Suddenly, she finds herself insecure about the relative mundanity of Iowa. Robyn is naturally cagey, often repelled by Sharon’s intense curiosity. She has little interest in dwelling in the past and keeps her cards close to the chest. Her roommate has burning questions about life in the big city, being gay, her “medicinal herbs.”
Robyn indulges Sharon in a few topics, but is always afraid of getting too close. The plot progresses as details of the past emerge. At first, both characters want what they imagine the other has. Sharon craves the exotic and wild; Robyn wants stability and comfort.
Though they have little in common, their relationship always makes sense. How fixed is identity? Why do people want to change? “The Roommate” asks existential questions but does not prescribe an answer, only offering a portrait of two characters wondering the same thing. There’s no pretension here – the play’s casual tone is thanks to its grounded writing and warm sense of humor.
