Review: A MIRROR at Third Rail Repertory Theatre

When seeing a new-to-me play, I typically try to walk in knowing as little as possible. I love the joy of discovery. That approach has never served me better than it did for A MIRROR, Sam Holcroft's gripping play now running at Third Rail Repertory Theatre. There's really no way to write a review of it without some spoilers, so if you'd prefer to go in cold – and I highly encourage this – stop reading now and just go see it.

Still here? Okay…continue at your own risk.

As you enter theatre, you are welcomed to a wedding, complete with a minister, a best man, and all the trappings of a simple ceremony. You are a guest, and it all looks perfectly ordinary until you open the program to find an Oath of Allegiance. You may also notice a very officially dressed woman with a stern look scanning the room. She has her eye on you.

The wedding begins. Then, after a few minutes, the signal is given and everything shifts. You're not there for a wedding. You're there to see a play, one the government doesn't want you to see. Suddenly you're not just an audience member. You're an accomplice.

What unfolds is a multilayered exploration of the blurry line between truth and stories, and why, in an authoritarian state, truth is threatening and stories must be controlled. Adem (Jonathan Thompson), a war veteran and mechanic, has written his first play, which consists of verbatim transcriptions of real conversations overheard through the thin walls of his apartment building. He submits it to the Ministry of Culture, as required by law. He is summoned to meet Director Čelik (Leif Norby), who sees potential in him, but only if he's willing to trade truth for patriotism. To help him, Čelik introduces Adem to Bax (Joshua Weinstein), a playwright who has mastered exactly that trade. And then there’s Mei (Kushi Beauchamp), Čelik's new assistant, to whom he secretly lends banned books, with motives that are anything but innocent.

Will Adem sell out like Bax did? Can Čelik control the story? Or will the truth come out? What will happen then?

At some point, you may think you have it figured out. But, still, all is not what it seems. Holcroft's script keeps revealing new layers, each one deepening the tension and the stakes. It's rich, daring, and propulsive. I was initially peeved about the 2-hour-15-minute runtime with no intermission. By the end, I understood: there was no moment at which the show could have paused without breaking the spell. The urgency is the point.

Isaac Lamb's direction keeps every thread taut. I was nervous and excited from start to finish. The ensemble is fantastic. All of the performances are perfectly matched to the complexity of Holcroft's script. To say more would give too much away.

I got all excited and nervous again just writing this. A MIRROR is electrifying theatre. Go see it.

A MIRROR runs through March 15. Details and tickets here.