By George Basler
American playwright Annie Baker has already packed a lot into a relatively short career. The 40-year-old has won the Pulitzer Prize for drama, was named a MacArthur fellow, and was called “a funny, emphatic genius” by New Yorker magazine.
You can see why this coming weekend (Feb. 11-13) at KNOW Theatre in downtown Binghamton when a four-person cast performs her first Off-Broadway play, Body Awareness. The production will run through Feb. 27.
The play is “a beautiful one” that features a mixture of dramatic and comedic moments and covers “real topics,” with the tensions inside a relationship at the forefront, said Tim Gleason, KNOW’s artistic director, who is directing the production.
Body Awareness is set in the fictional small town of Shirley, Vermont, where Phyllis (Lori Gordon Wilmot), a professor of psychology, lives with her partner Joyce (Melanie Paquin) and Joyce’s 21-year-old son from a previous marriage, Jared (Jacob Donlin). The young man has symptoms of Asperger’s syndrome but won’t admit it.
Tensions surface when Frank Bonitatibus (Chris Nickerson) shows up as a houseguest after being invited by Phyllis to speak at a body awareness conference she is organizing. Phyllis issued the invitation without being aware that Frank makes his living by taking nude photos of women. When she finds out, she’s outraged. But Joyce is intrigued and contemplates posing for one of Frank’s photos. The women’s relationship becomes strained.
Jared, meanwhile, deals with his own issues of adolescent anger and the pain of being stigmatized because of his condition.
Critics have called Baker’s playwriting style one that focuses less on action and more on conversations, with precise details and awkward silences.
Such is the case with Body Awareness, which “flows so easily. It doesn’t seem worked,” said Nickerson, who has directed and acted in numerous productions in the region.
While the play has serious moments, there are laugh-out-loud funny ones as well, he said, adding, “I read the part (of Frank) and thought I really want to play this guy. He’s just a cool old dude.”
Paquin auditioned for Body Awareness after acting in KNOW’s annual Playwrights and Artists Festival. The play “explores the complexity of human relationships,” she said. “I like that my character evolves from not having a strong sense of herself to reclaiming her relationship.”
Gordon Wilmot, who also has acted in the Playwrights and Artists Festival, auditioned because Body Awareness features two strong women characters. “I love both women’s roles, and how they relate to the issues of today,” she said.
Donlin, who is studying music and theater arts at SUNY Broome, is excited about doing his first mainstage production at KNOW. He relates to his character’s social awkwardness while also welcoming the fact that his character has a lot of funny lines, because he has practically no filter.
Body Awareness will be performed as a one-act play without intermission and lasts about 90 minutes.
IF YOU GO: Performances will be 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays Feb. 11-13, Feb. 18-20 and Feb. 25-27 at KNOW Theatre, 74 Carroll St., Binghamton. Tickets are $25 ($20 for seniors, $15 for students). There is a pay-what-you-can night at 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 17. To order tickets, visit KNOW’s website, www.knowtheatre.org.
Audience members must provide proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test within 48 hours of a performance. At-home tests are not accepted. Patrons must wear masks.
.
