Sadly, pain and loss tend to bring people together. That is an understatement for Kayleen and Doug, the two best-friends portrayed in Rajiv Joseph’s latest, "Gruesome Playground Injuries", which is now playing at Woolly Mammoth Theatre.
Two eight-year-olds’ lives collide in the nurse’s office: Doug rode his bike off of the roof and Kayleen can’t stop throwing up. As they mature from accident-prone kids to self-destructive adults, their broken hearts and broken bones draw them ever closer. These two rebels may only be fit for one another. But how far can one person go to heal another’s wounds?
Stepping into Woolly Mammoth, the mood is instantly set with the unique set design by Misha Kachman. Stylistically it hits all notes of the performance with its worn-out, childlike ice rink and tire swing battered over the years, much like the lives of Kayleen (Fernandez-Coffey) and Doug (Getman). The audience is embraced in the theatre-in-the-round with costume changes and set changes done in plain sight without any pause or intermission. At one point, I almost got hit in the face with the tire swing – it was that real.
Fernandez-Coffey and Getman are remarkably sincere in their roles as Kayleen and Doug. The moments where they are wounded, physically and emotionally, are heart-breaking – in a good way. The viewer is embraced in their undying love, yet because of their misfortunes they are simultaneously brought together and kept a part. The audience is taken on a journey throughout their lives from 8 years old to 28 to 33 and back to 13; immersed in an intertwining plot that is held together by unfortunate circumstances and a belief that they can heal one another.
The one factor that was a bit jarring was the music choices interspersed throughout the production. At crucial moments, I suddenly felt that the music did not capture the sentiments presented on stage. In the flashback to Kayleen and Doug’s teen years, they rock out to Lady Gaga which made the flashback less believable because what is more present day than Gaga?!
Gruesome Playground Injuries is a must-see dynamic piece, well written and well performed. Woolly Mammoth caters to the public with its “Cheap Date Night” performances on May 28, June 4 and June 11 – these dates include $2 PBR Tallboys all night! Additionally, patrons under 25 years of age can purchase $15 tickets with ID.
Previously in Live DC:
- 5/24: LiveDC: The Adicts @ RNR Hotel
- 5/24: LiveDC: The Donkeys @ Black Cat
- 5/23: LiveDC: The Barr Brothers w/ Kishi Bashi @ The Hamilton
- 5/23: LiveDC: Damien Jurado @ Black Cat
- 5/23: Report: Soundbites 2012
- 5/22: LiveDC: Spirit Animal @ Red Palace
- 5/22: LiveDC: Astra Via @ Black Cat
- 5/22: LiveDC: Father John Misty @ Rock & Roll Hotel
- 5/22: LiveDC: Drive-By Truckers and Lucinda Williams @ Merriweather
- 5/22: Photos: Summer Camp takes the "Ladies of Town" Drag Show
God loves a cheerful giver.
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