Grangeville is the county seat of Idaho County and the setting for and title of Samuel D. Hunter’s latest play exploring life in his home state. Older brother Jerry still lives in this town of slightly over 3000 people. He is newly separated from his high school sweetheart Stacey, raising two kids, acting as healthcare proxy for his mother, and doing his best to support himself by selling RVs. Younger half brother Arnold has distanced himself from all the bullying he received at the hands of his family and classmates. Married for nearly 17 years to Bram, he lives and creates works of art in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The only thing these two seem to have in common is a little DNA. But when it comes to light that their critically ill mother has made Arnold her Executor and granted him Power of Attorney, the siblings have no choice but to reconnect.
What follows is 90 minutes of stirring and often witty dialogue delivered by two versatile actors. Similar to Arnold, Hunter has created a piece of art that both mocks and celebrates his birthplace. This script is his usual blend of profound human insight and bookish humor. If you’ve enjoyed my spoiler-free reviews, you should jump to the last paragraph. There is simply no way to discuss this production without revealing something that is better experienced for the first time in the moment.
Arnold and Jerry are so different they don’t even share similar memories from their past. Their search for and avoidance of common ground is enthralling. In the meatier of the roles, Brian J. Smith portrays Arnold, the brighter and more settled of the brothers. Smith’s ability to navigate Arnold’s swift transitions of emotional state is impressive and endearing. Smith also plays Stacey just by adding a measure of softness to his tone and gestures. Paul Sparks takes on Jerry, a man full of deep regret about his conduct as a younger man and consumed by unhappiness with his current circumstances. At first, Jerry verbally tiptoes towards Arnold in their video chats. As his need increases, so does the urgency in his language. With a subtle change in posture and a waffling accent, Sparks then moves to the role of Bram.
With the precision of an orchestra conductor, director Jack Serio enables his actors to delicately build towards an inevitable crescendo. Initially we sit in darkness, fully tuned in to their choice of words and reflective pauses. Movement is added as the exchanges increase in temperature and truthfulness. Like Hunter’s characters, the black textured walls and dirty white door of the set by dots don’t fill out until far into the journey. Stacey Derosier’s lighting and Chris Darbassie’s sound have similarly calculated arcs. Props by Addison Heeren add the perfect punctuation.
Grangeville is a smartly written work that takes full advantage of live theater as a communication and entertainment vehicle. The Signature-commissioned World Premiere continues through March 23 at The Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theatre, 480 West 42nd Street. The house is shallow and well raked with the legroom of an economy seat on Spirit Airlines. Run time is 90 minutes with no intermission and no re-entry permitted. Tickets are available at https://signaturetheatre.org/show/grangeville/ and begin at $78 including fees. Arrive early to take advantage of the pleasant cafe and small bookshop on the second floor.
The Unforgettable Line 
Dropping Gumballs on Luke Wilson
On a soundstage, a talented production team is preparing to shoot an AT&T commercial featuring beloved Luke Wilson. The creative concept is to drop red gumballs around the star to symbolize all of Verizon’s dropped calls. Despite a lack of time to test the hastily put-together rig, prop lead Rob is able to toss the small projectiles just shy of Luke’s shoulder and the first few takes go smoothly. Then a case of nerves sets in and a few of the hard objects hit Luke squarely on the head. The actor sees stars; the director —award-winning documentarian Errol Morris — sees excitement and orders the crew to deliberately aim for the performer on the next take.
This is the set-up of the aptly named Dropping Gumballs on Luke Wilson, which is based on true events. Though the Directors Guild of America takes set safety very seriously, sadly there are occasional incidents of a director demanding a dangerous shot, as happened in this case. Rob Ackerman accurately has commercial Assistant Director, Alice, threaten to report Morris to the Guild. The script also provides enough background to realistically make her vulnerable to manipulation. It’s a creative stand-in for any project on which a concerned would-be whistleblower has instead been made complicit through intimidation. If only the playwright had trusted his audience to get his very clear and impactful message. Instead, after a lively and thought-provoking 55 minutes, he burdens the additional 20 with outright lectures on broader issues and political topics ranging from gender discrimination to Nazis. It’s an unnecessary departure from the previous territory that mars an otherwise engaging production.
First time director, famed playwright Theresa Rebeck, does an imaginative job of bringing us deep inside the physical set of the commercial and the mind set of each participant. The results are visually stimulating and often laugh-out-loud funny. The assorted screens that are employed by Morris for playback at the shoot are also used to show us the crew’s previous experiences that have brought them to this critical moment. (Yana Birkukova provides the ideal video design.) The nearly all-white set designed by Christopher and Justin Swader shows off these projections to great effect. Emphasis is achieved by Mary Ellen Stebbin’s well-placed lighting, which often shifts to a befitting green-screen green. The look is completed by the essential craft service table. Costumes designed by Tricia Barsamian will make any production pro feel right at home. All-important clever props are provided by Addison Heeren.
The Cast of Dropping Gumballs on Luke Wilson; Photo by Carol Rosegg
As a former prop person, Rob Ackerman makes the prop man, also named Rob, his spokesperson. George Hampe does a fabulous job of growing increasingly manic as character Rob struggles to remain the voice of reason and the closest thing we get to a hero. With a get-on-with-it gruffness, Dean Nolen is well cast as his boss and seasoned rigger, Ken. Reyna De Courcy is less successful at maintaining an appropriate emotional build in the role of their assistant, Jenny, becoming akin to a cartoon character with jerky motions and high-pitched yelps of displeasure. With enough charm and swagger, Jonathan Sale could easily be Luke Wilson’s deliberately pudgy body double. It’s less easy to know how well David Wohl impersonates Errol Morris. The part is written in one obnoxious note, though the theater vet certainly manifests a typical ego-driven artist. In the toughest role, Ann Harada swings rightly between assuredness and fear as Alice, but she struggles to differentiate the other small parts she takes on in memory and flashback.
Ackerman’s love of television production and those who strive to keep it creative and truthful shines through despite a dip in the ending. It is easy to see why both Luke Wilson and Errol Morris have given the project their blessing. With a little reworking of the last section, Dropping Gumballs on Luke Wilson has the makings of insightful modern satire. Running time is 75 minutes with no intermission. It plays through July 6, 2019, in the Mezzanine Theater at at A.R.T./ New York Theatre (502 W. 53rd Street). Tickets are $25 for union card holders, $30 general admission and $40 for reserved seating. For purchasing and additional information, visit TheWorkingTheater.org or call the Box Office (Ovationtix) at 866.811.4111.