Buoyed by the promise of jobs and economic development, a series of factories plague a small town. But with reports of dangerous chemicals leaking from the industrial plants, a young woman must make impossible choices to protect her loved ones. Set over 40 years, Rishi Varma’s new drama SULFUR BOTTOM sees an embattled family forced to confront generations of environmental injustice—and maybe just a few talking animals along the way.
Some elements of the play come off as unfinished; for one, I could never quite wrap my head around the concept of a whale terrorizing a small town. Sulfur Bottom feels like it needs more development to reach its full potential, but Varma’s message is still powerful: If the only path towards a better life cuts you off from the people who love you, how could future generations ever come to terms with the choices of their forebears?
In addition to the serious and timely themes, Varma injects touches of humor and an overriding sense of absurdism into the play. Set in the interior of the old increasingly deteriorating house, the sometimes confusing story moves back and forth in time and dimension, from living characters in present-day scenes to their memories and revealed secrets of the past, imaginings and post-mortem appearances, as they discuss their dilapidated home, disagree over what to do with it, and ultimately come together as a bonded family, joking over dinner (be it in the mind or in the afterlife) on the site of the no-longer extant house.
| 2025 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway |
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