It's
3 a.m. when a 21-year-old man arrives at his 91-year-old grandmother's
Greenwich Village apartment. The incessant buzzer finally awakens her, and she
opens the door to him and his heavily laden bicycle. He has just completed a
cross country bicycle trip and hopes to stay for a day or two. Thus begins Amy
Herzog's
award-winning 2011 play, "4000 Miles," presented by American Conservatory
Theater.
Often
funny, this work looks at how ecoconscious Leo Joseph-Connell (Reggie
Gowland), a bit
of a New Ager, interacts with the feisty Vera Joseph (Susan Blommaert), who takes pride in having been
a communist. Now, though, politics are less important than personal
interactions.
When
he arrives, the easy-going Leo is self-absorbed, mostly oblivious to how his
actions have affected some of the people closest to him. In short, he's a jerk.
Vera
has lived alone since her husband's death 10 years ago. She manages fairly well
even though age is catching up with her. She wears dentures; she needs hearing
aids; and she has a stooped walk, probably because of arthritis and/or
osteoporosis. Most frustrating to her, though, is that it's hard for her to
find words she wants to use.
The
only other characters are Bec (Julia Lawler), Leo's girlfriend who's
breaking up with him; and Amanda (Camille Mana), a Chinese American woman he
picks up one night probably for a fling, but that episode ends on a negative
note. There are several unseen characters, though, including Leo's adoptive
sister, Lily, who's also Chinese American; Micah, his best friend, who died on
the bicycle trip; and Leo's mother, from whom he's estranged.
During
the course of the one-act play, which runs about an hour and a half, Leo starts
to confront his grief over Micah's death. He also becomes more considerate of
others' feelings and realizes he needs to patch up relations with his immediate
family in Minnesota. He's finally beginning to grow up. However, his departure
leaves one wondering how Vera will manage. She'll be OK for a while, but she
has lost most of her immediate support system, and she's becoming more fragile.
Director
Mark Rucker and
his capable cast make each character believable and the action natural.
Blommaert as Vera ages herself 26 years from her true age of 65 through her
demeanor and actions. It's an impressive transformation.
Erik
Flatmo has created
the comfy apartment (lighted by Alexander V. Nichols) with, among other details, its
shelves of books and a variety of art on the walls. The character-defining
costumes are by Alex Jaeger with sound by Will McCandless.
Because
so much information is revealed through conversation rather than action, one
must listen carefully to learn more about the seen and unseen characters as
well as a lot of background. Some of this was lost on opening night because the
actors didn't always pause long enough to allow laughter to subside after
amusing lines.
Otherwise,
this is a thought-provoking play by an up-and-coming playwright who based parts
of it on her own family.