By JULES SHINKLE
BG Independent News
Bella is haunted by many things – the traumatic death of her mother, her perceived failure as an author, and her recent dire prognosis. In this precarious time of her life, she needs someone to confide in. Who she ends up trusting leads to a blurring of fiction and reality, narrator and author.
Actors Collaborative Toledo is staging Adam Rapp’s The Sound Inside at Trinity Episcopal Church, 316 Adams St., Toledo. The show, directed by Joe Capucini, will run July 25 and 26 at 8 p.m., and July 27 at 3 p.m. Click here for tickets https://act419.booktix.com/
Bella Baird (Marissa Rex) is a middle-aged author and creative writing professor at Yale University. She serves as our protagonist and narrator, relaying her life to the audience as if it were a public reading of her memoir – or as she puts it, “a confession of sorts.”
The Sound Inside opens with a 15-minute monologue showcasing her fiercely intelligent and melancholic literary voice. Despite her feelings of having stagnated as a writer, Bella is far from uninspired.
She’s constantly spinning together beautiful, rich sentences. If a particularly vibrant metaphor comes to mind, she’s quick to jot it down in her notebook, always on hand.
The play’s only other character, Christopher Dunn (Garrett Monasmith), is a freshman enrolled in Bella’s class eager to prove himself as an author. He is ambitious and intense, declaring midway through the semester that he has begun writing a novel.
When the two meet during office hours, their relationship is immediately combative and unpleasant. Christopher, the classic first-year college student who thinks he’s got everyone figured out, carries with him an air of superiority. He’s unwilling to fit in with his peers, disgusted by their use of social media and patronage to the campus cafes. He owns the latest Macbook Air but much prefers his manual typewriter.
Bella is exasperated by him, wishing he could simply sign up for an appointment via email without going on a diatribe about the inauthenticity of electronic communication.
Despite their apparent lack of chemistry, the two share a passion for literature. Faulkner, David Foster Wallace, and Dostoevsky are a few among the dozens of authors referenced throughout the play. They freely borrow the language of their heroes and take delight in discussing their prose. As they search for their footing in conversation, Bella and Christopher find a peculiar kindred with each other.
Rex’s performance is stunningly grounded. Her character’s reserved brilliance feels like her own. Monasmith plays Christopher as perfectly annoying, a character truly in love with his own vocabulary. Both actors excel at physically embodying their roles – Bella is exhausted as she is morose while Christopher is awkward yet arrogant. The two display massive dramatic talent.
The Sound Inside is haunting, vivid, and relentlessly reflective. The characters being studied and their ensuing relationship are fascinating. Like the most gripping of psychological novels, The Sound Inside will leave its audience in contemplation long after its ending.
