BIG QUESTIONS TIMIDLY ADDRESSED: Harrington Repertory stages new original play about the right to die

Have you ever said to yourself, “I wish I were dead.” 

It’s a statement I’m damn near certain every single person has uttered at least once. It’s a plea for sweet relief often said in gest, shame, horror, sarcasm, anger, heartbreak, or in just about any scenario imaginable. Hopefully, if one is lucky, those words are never spoken in earnest. Because unlike our births, dear reader, there can be choice in our deaths. 

Parents elect to bring a new life into the world, a joyous event to be sure, but the new life had no say in its being brought into existence. So, if over the course of living that “new life” finds itself with a sound mind but failing body, why not elect to leave the mortal coil? Their own choice, on their own terms and accord; free will and all that, am I right? Death is the final event,  an event that cannot be avoided, debated, bribed, or bullied, but it can be accepted. There is grace in the acceptance of the grave. 

It's that acceptance and grace which Rose-Mary Harrington puts on display with her repertory’s latest production, “Orion’s Choice.” An original work of Harrington’s own mind and direction, a thought-provoking slice of life dramedy about holding on to one’s autonomy up until the very end. 

Now that may sound like a heavy night at the theater, but Harrington finds moments to bring  laughter to the mix. When paired with performances that truly grasp the weight of the material a fine balance is struck on stage that keeps the chuckles and the waterworks evenly matched. Overall, the play would be right at home on the Lifetime Channel, with its hammy approach to its serious subject matter. 

Elizebeth Michaels brings the story of Mary to life as a wise-cracking woman, who embodies the adage that you’re only as old as you feel. From the opening moments, Michaels imbues Mary with a warm smile and zest for life, but as we learn, those in suffering often work to shield others from the same. Michaels brings Mary’s metaphorical shield to the fore as Mary works to protect those around her from dealing with the full reality of our mortality in the way she currently is.

Over dinner Mary reveals to her estranged son, Orion (Joshua Lowry), that she has been diagnosed with the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. The audience, like Lowry’s Orion, can’t help but feel the punch to the gut in real time with him; but his mother’s request drops jaws to the floor. Mary asks her son to assist in her dignified departure. As Orion recovers from the firehose of shock, Harrington sneaks in some levity, when Orion questions Mary if she was serious, Mary replies “I was going to say dead serious.”

On this point the show will make it or break it with its audience, it's a controversial look at the sanctity of life. A conversation often held as a lynchpin for political sway about the start of life. Oddly enough, all parties often fall mum on the matter when it comes to the end of life. One’s own finality being too morbid for many to ponder upon, I imagine.

Harrington is well researched on the matter, even down to Mary’s selected way to slip away. Based on actual experiences around the Pacific Northwest, where the play is set. Mary plans to use a Helium tank and an oxygen-mask  to peacefully pass away in her sleep via gentle asphyxiation. She only asks Orion to remove any trace of her plot to save her any embarrassment. Michaels gives a proud agency to Mary, she won’t be a burden, and she won’t lose herself; points she reiterates to Orion who goes on questioning his mother’s state of mind. 

Ever the pragmatist, Orion agrees to his mother’s terms, but only if she’ll humor other options first. In one of the show’s more well aimed and damning indictments to power, Harrington pulls no punches on the state of elder care in this country. What plays out is a vignette horror show of the vulture-like tactics of the nursing home system, shown to be more predatory than any of nature’s predators. I only wish the play had hit some of its other metaphorically nails on the head as hard as it did this one. 

Lowry is great in his portrayal of the title character, and in depicting the struggle of the choice he is forced to make. The actor plays it straight as the uptight son next to Michaels’ lust for life Mary. The reason for Orion and Mary’s estrangement is left simply as his choice after his parent’s divorce. Told that the two are estranged due to Orion choosing to live with his father after his parent’s divorce. 

I appreciate the points the play’s mission statement sets to lay out, a reflection on society’s views on the Right to Die. However the play’s plot juggles scenes, characters, and other social issues, ranging broadly from corporate greed to childhood sexual abuse, generally distracting from the Harrington’s main point.

Similar to Orion’s glazed over estrangement, Mary’s roommate Micheline (Jen Ingulli) is briefly described as being Catholic and “One of the Right to Lifer’s,” leaving a potential breadcrumb of background never to be addressed again.

A series of nightmarish flashback scenes depicting Mary’s childhood abuse at her parents hands, helping to cement the view that Mary is a survivor, is intertwined with the rest of the plot. While well acted and crafted, these scenes bare no greater stake to the story than a touch of dark, shock value. 

From a technical standpoint the production made a lot out of a little by investing in detail. When the audience enters the Ruth & Bucky Stein theater to find their seats, eyes will likely dart all about. A curio cabinet collecting fine China figurines anchors the left of the stage, serving as centerpieces for the childhood flashbacks. While a full stock kitchen pantry holds to the right of the stage, as well as a full-size refrigerator. This element grants the actors real food to eat and real drink to… well drink. While the suspension of disbeliefs is important, it’s always a great advantage to stagecraft when real refreshments are in use. 

Of major note was the lighting design done by Neilly Carroll. The technician’s use of sickly greens and unsettling purples to light the flashback scenes truly helps set them apart from the rest of the real-time period of the production. During an important scene at Mary’s Fourth of July party, Carroll’s pairing of well-timed sound effects and impressively programmed lighting created a spectacular fireworks show within the intimate theater. 

There is a lot of talk happening today about just what personal freedoms an individual has over their own body. So, I deeply respect what Harrington Repertory set out to achieve with staging the challenging, original work that is “Orion’s Choice.” The story is important to see, but the conversations that follow are even more important.

DETAILS:

Orion's Choice

Ruth and Bucky Stein Theatre

Thalian Hall | 310 Chestnut St.

November 7-16

Fri.-Sat. 7:30 p.m. | Sat.-Sun. 2 p.m.

Tickets: $35