Critical Reflection Of WSU’s Performance Of The Search By Elizabeth Crino

On September 30th, 2018, I had the opportunity to watch WSU’s performance of The Search, written by WSU student Elizabeth Crino in the black box, arena style Welsbacher Theater; located at the WSU Metroplex. This particular show was the winner of the WSU Theatre National Playwriting Competition. The show was under the direction of Mariah Clemons. It was designed by Ali Miró, Hatley Utter, Kelly Edwards, and Jacob Kramer. Makenzie Hercules was the stage manager for the show, with Danette Baker overseeing the fight choreography. The Search was a riveting show that combines elements of comedy and drama to present the unique and peculiar story. The professionalism, technique, and skills of the performers combined with the design and directing of the show offered an impeccable performance for the audience to enjoy. This domestic comedy tells the story of four roommates; Sarah, Ted, Beth, and Ned. One day as Ted is waking up in the morning, he stumbles into the kitchen and knocks over several dishes which wake up the rest of the house. After hearing such a loud ruckus, Sarah (Ted’s sister) and Beth rush in to see what caused all that noise, finding Ted lying on the floor with a gash in his palm and surrounded by broken plates. As Beth and Sarah try to make something out of what was happened they come to the conclusion that Ned, their other roommate, has neglected yet again to wash the dishes.

This causes the characters to begin complaining about Ned’s behavior; about how he is always slacking and not doing his share of the work. As this continues they come to the realization that none of them have actually seen Ned for the past week. This prompts them to begin calling him and looking for traces of where he has gone. Panic sets in after they realise that he has been missing for a whole week. The group begins to make excuses in order to not call the police and report Ned as missing. Days pass, and the group once again tries to hash out who will call the authorities, until Ted convinces Beth and Sarah that they should just forget about Ned; their lives have been so much better ever since he disappeared that bringing him back would make things bad again. The trio ultimately agrees to move on and forget about Ned. Just as they have agreed to forget about Ned, one of his friends and teammates, Taylor, comes to their house worried about the whereabouts of Ned. This prompts the group to come up with the lie that Ned has been admitted into a psychiatric hospital due to a breakdown that he experienced a few days back. Sarah and Ted lie and say that Ned’s breakdown was caused by something that Taylor had told him. This causes Taylor to become agitated and remorseful as he thinks that he has caused great pain to Ned. The lie becomes even more outrageous when they tell Taylor that Ned has broken out of the hospital and is coming to look for Taylor. Taylor then flees and leaves the group alone. The story concluded when the trio admits that Ned wasn’t that much of a bad guy after all and decide to adopt a kitten to surprise Ned with when he returns.

The last scene ends with the audio of a voicemail from Ned begging for help from Sarah, Ted, and Beth. When analyzing the overall production of the show, The Search offered a brilliantly produced domestic comedy. The set design was very basic, which helped the production feel very organic as it did not use many elaborate transitions from act to act, which could easily distract from the show as a whole. Though the basic set design of the show also limited the story a bit, as the only way that the audience could comprehend the change of time was with the change from normal lighting to blue overcast lighting and music. This lighting and music brilliantly encouraged a sense of change, the music was of high tempo and coordinated with the emotions and overall atmosphere that the actors were portraying. For instance, when the group first forgets about Ned, the lights in the theatre dim and go from natural light to blue light and the speakers begin to play upbeat music as the characters go throughout their day displaying no sense of worry. This is an example of how lighting and sound can communicate with the audience a change or shift in emotions, power dynamics, etc. Analyzing the performance as a whole it can easily be said that this production was the product of very talented actors who delivered and personified the characters appropriately. The chemistry of the characters was very evident from the beginning. When Ted had cut his hand and Sarah and Beth came into the kitchen to see what had happen the worry within their voice and their actions were enough to set the tone for their group dynamic; they were able to create the sense of a strong bond between them. With Sarah and Ted being siblings, small gestures and actions helped create the narrative of them being siblings. For instance, when Ted becomes agitated with Beth after an argument they have, Sarah can be seen comforting Ted while Beth continues to talk, they then do a sort of handshake that only they know. This is something small that helps create the sense of connection between the characters which helps blur the line between fact and fiction and helps the audience feel as if they are in the room with the characters.

Another example of how the actors brought the characters to life is with the character Taylor. When Taylor was falsely told that Ned was gone and that he was responsible for it, the actor playing Taylor began to cry. The cry he gave out sounded very realistic and his actions were realistic and somewhat over the top; though this over the top acting was a means to play into the comedic elements of the show. Also his fear of thinking that Ned was out to get him was very organic and blurred the line between acting and real-life emotions. Not much can be said about the costuming of the characters. Due to the play being set within our current time, it gives the costume designer more creative liberty when coming up with costuming for the characters. I was relatively disappointed in the costuming for all the characters except for Beth. Ted and Sarah, being the other two reaccrung characters in the show, had very minimal costume changes. For Sarah, the character would transition from different bottoms or would place a garment over the shirt they had been wearing throughout the whole show. Ted, much like Sarah, had almost no costume changes. The only change of full clothing that Ted had took place during the latter end of the show.

In my opinion, this is a waste of character expression. Simple changes in clothing or simply adding accessories can help evolve and give the audience a better sense of who the characters are and what they like. Beth had the most costume changes and it gave her a better sense of individuality. The only reasoning I can think of for the lack of costume changes for the other recurring characters is a lack of funding because like aforementioned, the costume manager had more liberty to outfit the characters in different ways and with different styles thus evolving the characters and helping to give them a better sense of individuality.

The Search written by Elizabeth Crino was a very well-produced and performed show. The combined elements of sound, lighting, set, costuming, and acting techniques helped evolve the show into a very comprehensive and well executed performance. The actors fed off of each other energy and equally helped carry the show throughout its entirety. The fact that it was performed at the Welsbacher Theater, which is a back box theater, gave the director more liberty in creating an immersive experience for the audience. The fourth wall was present and as an audience member, I was immediately captivated and drawn into the story. Overall, after watching this production I left the theater moved by the performance; which is overall the goal of any show.