By Janelle Cass, Asst. Arts & Entertainment Editor
I attended Susquehanna University’s Department of Theatre’s mainstage production Mermaid of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch on Friday, Sept. 24.
The play tells a story of a PhD student, Marnie, who kidnapped a mermaid, convinced her incredible discovery would bring attention to the horrific state of the ocean, especially where it concerns the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, where the mermaid lived. Despite her intentions, the violent and sassy Mermaid refuses to help, resulting in several failed escape attempts and two more hostages. When Marnie’s supervisor, Dr. Peterson, arrives, Marnie discovers that her discovery was not all that original, and her preconceived notions about her work in conservation might have all been a lie.
Though it uses fantastical elements, this story tackles a serious real-life situation and makes the audience consider their standards of right and wrong, and how to deal with the repercussions of human actions. Not only does this play bring attention to a tragic and dangerous situation in our oceans, it also provokes thoughts of what we choose to protect and why, as well as what we will do to protect one thing, even if it hurts another.
Overall, SU’s production of this play was fantastic. The actors brought the story to life with the right balance of humor and respect for the content. I went into this show not knowing what to expect at all, and came out having had a great time, as well as a lot of thought provoking questions on my mind.
First, the decorations throughout the audience were very well done. Strings of plastic bags strung over the walls like garlands, and “islands” of trash separating seats in lieu of social distancing, all made the audience immediately immersed in the story. The set itself was simple, yet well constructed, and had just the right amount of character for the show.
Grace Yurko gave an incredible performance as Mermaid, and balanced the character right on the edge of sassy and unhinged. One moment you were laughing at her antics, and the next remembering that her character is extremely violent and dangerous. She took on the challenge of playing the title role extremely well, and will not easily be forgotten.
Alexis Jefferson played the role of Marnie, the frantic and misled PhD student perfectly. She was able to portray this character in a way that made you almost want to agree with her, or at least sympathize with her, even though she had three people hostage in her apartment.
Alex Wilson as Will the repairman was the highlight of the show for me. He was hilarious, and provided most of the comic relief throughout a show that got pretty serious at times. Though the other actors were all fantastic, Wilson gave the most memorable performance of the night for me.
Logan Andres as Sandy was another stand-out to me. Her take on the scared and sassy pizza delivery girl was very well done, and her comedic timing was great.
Finally, Seth Everly took on the mad scientist character of Dr. Peterson. He did an amazing job on this villain. Everly played this character in an almost nonchalant and hurried way that helped the audience see how far gone he was morally, and caused the other characters to reconsider their standards of right and wrong.
While my review of the show itself is all positive, if there is one negative thing I have to say it’s that there were no warnings for strobe light use, and there was a significant and intense use of strobes in this play. Usually at a production that uses strobe lights there are warnings posted outside the theater, in the playbill, and in pre-show announcements, and I did not notice any of the above.
I went to see this show with my mother who is prone to migraines, and we both walked out with headaches because of the intense strobe usage. While thankfully neither of us have a condition that caused anything worse than a headache, it was concerning to see that there were no warnings as it would have been easy for someone with a severe condition to walk in and have a reaction. In the future, I hope the department takes more care to post the necessary warnings to prevent these situations from occurring.