BWW Reviews: LAST DAY Needs Blood Transfusion

Last Day

Written by Richard Vetere, Directed by Eric C. Engel, Set Design by Jenna McFarland Lord, Costume Design by Fabian Aguilar, Lighting Design by John R. Malinowski, Sound Design by Dewey Dellay; Production Stage Manager, Marsha Smith

CAST: Therese Plaehn, Timothy John Smith, Francisco Solorzano

Performances through August 7 at Gloucester Stage Company, 267 East Main Street, Gloucester, MA; Box Office 978-281-4433 or www.gloucesterstage.org

Gloucester Stage Company has a penchant and a pretty good track record for presenting premieres. This summer's untried offering is the world premiere of Richard Vetere's Last Day, summarized in the press material as "a dark, delicious and mysterious love story set in a Long Island cemetery where not all secrets are underground." Directed by Artistic Director Eric C. Engel, the play features Timothy John Smith, who impressed as Joey in The Most Happy Fella; Francisco Solorzano, last seen at the Gorton Theatre in Israel Horovitz's Sins of the Mother; and Therese Plaehn, a Scituate native making her Gloucester Stage debut.

Last Day chronicles the final 24-hour period on the job for cemetery worker Ryan (Smith) as he is about to retire. Sean (Solorzano) is his supervisor and best friend, as well as his accomplice in the murder of the previous supervisor about ten years earlier. Other than Sean's wife Melissa (Plaehn), no one knows their secret that has been buried as long as Billy. Sean got Billy's job, a sizable raise, and the opportunity for his family to live rent-free in the caretaker's house after Ryan took a few whacks at Billy's head with a shovel. Following a long night of drinking, Billy said something to which Ryan took exception and it was lights out for Billy.

As the play gets underway, the dual problems facing the friends are that Billy, Jr., who is about to enter the Police Academy, is still asking questions about his father's disappearance, and the Archdiocese that owns the St. Michael's Catholic Cemetery has plans for "Section 15," the previously unused area where Sean interred the body. Before Ryan can lay down his shovel and take off for parts unknown, he and Sean must move Billy, Sr.'s remains, and it has to be done in the dark. As the evening wears on, not only is the murder victim dredged up and put under the glare of the flashlight, but additional secrets are either hinted at or revealed.

Unfortunately, most of the juicy stuff in Last Day happened on "that night" ten years ago and now the boys and Melissa rehash it over and over and over, alluding to bad things that they each might have said or done and trying to discern what really happened and why. Vetere tosses out enough Red Herrings to stock a fish farm and leads us down blind alleys where we expect to get mugged, only to have everyone make nice and say how much they really love each other. We think that Ryan and Melissa may have had a dalliance on the side until the depth of the Ryan/Sean bromance is exposed. Ryan may be a murderer, but it would be unthinkable for him to move in on his best friend's wife. Really? Vetere would rather try to convince us (and Sean) that there is more to the relationship between the two men than either the back story or their behavior supports.

During a talkback with Engel, Vetere, and the cast after the show, Smith admitted in response to an audience member's question that he had difficulty understanding the psychology of his character and Ryan's motives for his choices. That difficulty manifests itself in Smith delivering an atypical substandard portrayal. There are moments, especially those connected to Ryan's rage, where Smith's intensity shines through, but he cannot overcome the playwright's lack of development of his character's motivation and otherwise seems out of touch, almost flat.

Sean is the most interesting character because he has a conscience, albeit an immature one. Many of his actions are self-serving, but he finds his boundaries when pushed to the limit. Solorzano gives an edgy performance that is in keeping with the pressure that Sean is under from all sides. Awareness creeps into his expression as he learns things about his wife, even as she cautions him that he has always preferred to remain in the dark. Plaehn's Melissa treads a line between cocky and panicky, depending on how she reads the situation at hand. She has more in common with Ryan's brand of morality than that of her husband, but Vetere leaves her motives unclear, as well. None of the threesome is particularly likable or sympathetic, despite their assertions that they are good people.

It is left to Engel to guide the actors through this netherworld where alliances shift, emotions sizzle and fizzle, and the characters spew platitudes while the playwright has left their truth in limbo. Thanks to Jenna McFarland Lord's desolate design for the cemetery, and evocative lighting and sound by John R. Malinowski and Dewey Dellay respectively, Last Day feels more like a dark, mysterious ghost story than a love story. Vetere is adept at creating a sense of dread, but he keeps letting us off the hook. Even the title of the play suggests something ominous, so I'd suggest going deeper into those dark alleys to see where they lead. There might be some buried treasure that would add flesh and blood to the bones of this malnourished story. 

Photo Credit: Gary Ng (Francisco Solorzano, Timothy John Smith, Therese Plaehn)