My Own Take: "The Coast Starlight" Off Broadway
Photos by T. Charles Ericxkson
The show: “The Coast Starlight”
What makes it special: A new play by Keith Bunin. It also stars Will Harrison who is currently starring in the Amazon Prime TV series “Daisy Jones & The Six.” Bunin ‘s other plays include “The Credeaux Canvas,” and has written for TV’s “In Treatment.” Bunin also wrote the screenplay for the film “Horns,” directed by Alexandre Aja, starring Daniel Radcliffe, and based on the novel by Joe Hill,
What’s the play about?: As described in the program notes: “A young man armed with a secret that can land him in terrible trouble boards the Coast Starlight, the long-distance train that runs from Los Angeles to Seattle. With the help of his fellow travelers, all of whom are reckoning with their own choices, he has roughly one thousand miles to figure out a way forward.”
That doesn't tell you much: Think of it this way: You know when you’re traveling on a bus, train or subway and finally after staring at the poster ads you start looking at the other folks seated around you and perhaps start to imagine what their lives might be, what their story is, where they are going and why, and maybe even imagine yourself entering their narrative? That’s what this play posits.
So it’s all imaginary?: Yes and no. It starts as a clever theatrical conceit as one by one six different unmoored characters board the train and begin their journey. We learn of their backstories through imaginary conversations among the characters. Just as you wonder how long the playwright can continue in the realm of the past conditional tense and the “what ifs,” (as in, “What if I had said to him…” or “If we'd actually had this conversation, this is when I would've asked you…”) the play takes fascinating turns (and often literally in Arnulfo Maldonado’s revolving set) . That’s when you begin to get swept up in the swirl of these heartfelt imaginings where hope, grace and empathy come together is a wondrous alternative universe. It’s a tender, funny, wistful, bittersweet work that reminded me a bit of the characters in Quiara Alegría Hudes’ Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Water by the Spoonful” — which had its world premiere at Hartford Stage — and its characters longing for human connections.
And the performances?: Tyne Rafaeli, who also directed the play's world premiere at La Jolla Playhouse in 2019, guides a splendid ensemble cast. T.J. (Will Harrison) gently grounds the main narrative as a young Navy man on leave who is nervously contemplating not returning to the base. (That’s not a spoiler because it is revealed in the play’s first minutes.) There’s Jane (Camila Canó-Flaviá), an animation artist en route to visit her boyfriend and their shaky relationship. There’s (Rhys Coiro), an ex-serviceman, another character lost in a limbo, traveling to his ailing mom and Ed (Jon Norman Schneider), a businessman who is on the verge of losing it completely. Anna (Michelle Wilson) is returning home after identifying her estranged brother’s body. Liz (Mia Barron, hysterical) is fleeing a couples’ Esalen retreat. In a season full of terrific ensemble work, this group of very fine actors is right up there with the best of them.
Who will like it?: Those who respond to clever theatrical conceits. Existentialists. Amtrak passengers.
Who won’t?: Those when prefer more realistic narratives.
For the kids?: Smart and questioning teens who are beginning to start their own life journey will find special meaning in a work about characters making choices about their ever-changing destinations
Thoughts on leaving the parking lot: I look forward to seeing this play on many other stages around the country. It’s a highly theatrical and satisfying work that stays with you for some time after. You’ll never look at that stranger seated across the aisle from you in the same way again.