Review: EVERY BRILLIANT THING at Open Stage

Every Brilliant Thing began its life as a short story by Duncan MacMillan, evolved into a monologue, and finally, with the addition of Jonny Donahoe to the team, became a one-man show with audience participation. It captured the hearts and minds of audiences so thoroughly that it ran for four months in New York, toured around the world, and was adapted for HBO. Known for theatre that makes audiences lean forward and open their minds, Every Brilliant Thing is the perfect play for Open Stage. Every Brilliant Thing is the story of a man who begins writing a list, at the age of seven, of every brilliant thing that makes life worth living when his mom first attempts suicide. While the show tackles the very serious topics of mental health, depression, and suicide, it is a show filled with humor, joy, and hope. Audiences can experience Open Stage's production of Every Brilliant Thing through September 25th.

Directed by Karen Ruch, Every Brilliant Thing at Open Stage features Stuart Landon. With a little help from the audience, Landon takes us back in time to 1989 and his character's first experience of death-that of his dog Sherlock Bones. As the story progresses, we learn about his mother's suicide attempts and their impact on his life and that of his father. One of the most interesting parts of the show is the way in which the audience is involved. Audience participation can be a terrifying thing for folks, but Landon creates a warm, inviting, and safe environment, asking audience members if they would be comfortable reading a word or phrase from a card when he says a number during the show. The items on these cards become the list of brilliant things-1. Ice cream. It is an incredible thing to hear different voices from all over the theatre reading out these items and experiences. Just hearing things like "ice cream", "conversation", and "hugging" can take the audience on a journey through their own memories-eliciting smiles, nods, and even tears.

Landon is a wonderful storyteller, drawing the audience into the life of this man as he ages from seven to seventeen to college and into adulthood. The tone is conversational and the emotions are raw and authentic. Audiences will find themselves laughing, crying, and waiting breathlessly to hear the next item on the list-willing him to reach one thousand things, then two thousand things, and then one million things. The play is interspersed with humor, facts and statistics concerning mental health and suicide, and, above all, hope.

Every Brilliant Thing at Open Stage is an engaging, emotional, and beautiful piece presented with authenticity and candor. For information on this production and others, as well as the theatre's pandemic safety protocols, visit www.openstagehbg.com.

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