Tag Archives: Lauren Yee

Mother Russia

Comedy March 3, 2026 Leave a comment

When I went to Russia as a child, my parents and I brought Skippy, Hanes, and Levis to a friend’s niece in Moscow.  All the best restaurants only took American dollars, which were unavailable to local residents, and we were constantly shadowed “for our safety.”  When I returned as an adult, all of my guides had their own Ikea-furnished apartments.  One of our destinations was a sprawling indoor mall in the center of Moscow and international fast-food chains were as plentiful as the family owned dumpling joints.  Between those two eras, the Soviet Union had been dissolved and the promise of social democracy hung in the air.  

It is within that unsettled period of 1992 that Lauren Yee has set her new comedy, Mother Russia.  Erstwhile aspiring KGB agent Dmitri is operating a tiny general store in St. Petersburg while surveying former pop star Katya as a side gig.  His childhood friend Evgeny tries to shake him down for protection money.  The pathetic attempt at menace leads to an alternative job offer. A devoted fan of Katya, Evgeny will follow her when she is off mic and will take a shift monitoring her. The fourth character is an explosion of innovation.  David Turner portrays Mother Russia herself, an embodiment of Russian history, ideology and culture.  Dressed in bright tomato red from babushka to pointy shoe (costumes by Sophia Choi), she can see back to the “not so bad” Ivan the Terrible and forward to Pussy Riot and Navalny.  Within the whirl of broad and situational humor, she is the snide ballast, overseeing all that transpires.

Wildly praised prior to the pandemic — particularly for Cambodian Rock Band which inventively explored the terror of the Khmer Rouge using a father/daughter story with music — Lauren Yee is currently a playwright in residence at the SignatureTheatre.  Her pen and tongue are still sharp, though she seems in a more fun-loving mood this time around.  Lines are written in colloquial English but with Russian construction.  Teddy Bergman’s playful direction enriches the slender script.  The prolific and visionary scenic design team of dots plays up the conflicting worlds of artifice and factuality that run throughout its pages.  The central portion of the set has a detailed commercialized frame and a defaced rolling metal door that is often used for emphasis.  Fancifully painted curtains complete the look of a city bus and Evgeny’s family home.  This two-pronged motif is continued with Jon Knust cunning props.  Sound designer Mikhail Fiksel makes terrific use of a wide range of music

The part of Mother Russia is made riveting by Turner’s droll and pricelessly-timed thick-accented delivery.  He is not alone in mining the dialogue for every precious laugh.  Dmitri could easily be two dimensional, but Steven Boyer gives him heart and amiableness.  Adam Chanler-Berat elevates and varies Evgeny’s many feeble attempts at swagger.  The two play good-naturedly with one another, especially in a scene co-starring a Filet-O-Fish sandwich.  Rebecca Naomi Jones does the most she can as Katya, a surprisingly flat role given that the singer/revolutionary is the catalyst for the climactic scene. Ironically, we get a clearer image of Dmitri’s never-seen girlfriend, Masha. 

Genuinely unfunny is the current design of the black box space of The Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre.  The narrow ceiling-high stadium seating is oppressive, leading many audience members to use their programs for air circulation.  Those in the back rows crouch like tennis fans in an impractical effort to take in the intimate scenes while those nearer the front must crane their neck to follow David Turner’s antics.  If the red house lights are intended to make us feel as disoriented as a typical Russian in the 1990s, then they work.

The ingredients for blistering social commentary are present.  But Mother Russia subverts a more serious conversation about economic and societal challenges in favor of punchy lines in absurdist packaging.  Given the current state of our own culture, one could do worse than spend 90 minutes laughing at and with these talented artists.  The New York Premiere continues through March 22 at the SignatureTheatre in Pershing Square, 480 West 42nd Street.  Tickets begin at $74.  Visit https://signaturetheatre.org/show/mother-russia/ for more information.

Rebecca Naomi Jones and Adam Chanler -Berat in Mother Russia; photo by HanJie Chow

Cambodian Rock Band

Musical, Play, streaming March 20, 2024 Leave a comment

The actions perpetrated by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia were so extreme they are quite literally incomprehensible to many Americans.  The brutal regime very nearly decimated the cultural heritage of the Southeast Asian nation.  Nearly a quarter of the population was wiped out including the majority of doctors, teachers and artisans.  To this day, it is considered one of the world’s least developed countries by the United Nations.

Lauren Yee’s play with music, Cambodian Rock Band, takes us through the Cambodian Civil War and genocide through the eyes of one family and a prison commander who has finally been brought to trial on charges of Crimes Against Humanity.  It’s 2008 and Chum has arrived in Phenom Penh for a surprise visit with his American-born daughter, Neary.  She has been investigating Duch, who oversaw the murder of so many prisoners that only seven were found alive at the time of liberation.  For reasons that become obvious, Chum has conflicted feelings about his “lost” homeland and would love nothing more than for his child to give up her fact-finding mission, return to the USA and attend law school.  Flashbacks to 1975 complete the picture.  A time when music thrived in the country, these scenes include the amateur recording of the titular rock band with songs by Dengue Fever under the musical direction of Jason Liebson.  (Whether they have you dancing at your seat or tapping your foot with impatience to get on with the story depends very much on your love of tunes from that period.)

The work warmly humanizes the examination of the different ways in which people respond to danger and the instinct to survive. Using Duch as a narrator, Yee never lets us forget that we are watching a play orchestrated by a storyteller who can manipulate the plot.  Along the way, she weaves enough fact into the dialogue to carry everyone along without feeling lectured to.  Director Nelson T. Eusebio III skillfully handles the transitions between history, thriller, and dark comedy.  The ensemble — Eileen Doan, Jojo Gonzalez, Alex Lydon, Shawn Mouacheupao, K Chinthana Sotakoun, and Greg Watanabe — radiate emotional energy.  Many cast members perform dual roles, enhanced by the costume designs of Yoon Bae. The stark set by Riw Rakkulchon keeps our attention on the powerful language with the concert elements, including colorful projections by Caite Hevner, allowing us to breathe or maybe even scream. 

K Chinthana Sotakoun as Neary/Sothea; Photo Credit Wesley Hitt

In light of our own current struggles with authoritarianism and the reevaluation of America’s role on the international stage, the themes explored in Cambodian Rock Band ring even louder than in 2019 when it premiered.  While Yee softens the blows of the story with song, she never blunts the message.  Running time is 2 ½ hours including a 15 minute intermission.  Theatre Squared provides a lounge with a live stream at their venue in Fayetteville, Arkansas for those who need to take a mid-performance break.  There is also the option to stream the production from home, which is how I was able to see it in New York.  Performances continue through March 24.  Visit https://tix.theatre2.org/overview/25509/ for ticket prices and further information.

The Song of the Summer – SF Playhouse and On Demand

Comedy, Live Stream July 27, 2021 Leave a comment

Robbie (Jeremy Kahn) is colliding with fame rather than experiencing a gentle brush with it.  Similar to Robin Thicke and his “Blurred Lines,” Robbie’s catchy “Bad Decision” (written in our world by Max Vernon and Helen Park) is a hit that is being met with charges of plagiarism and backlash for what some perceive as “rapey” lyrics.  Unlike Thicke, who brashly defended himself (and was ultimately fined millions of dollars and served with divorce papers), Robbie internalizes every boo from the audience.  In deep need of a mental break, he has ditched his upbeat manager, Joe (Reggie D. White), and taken a multi-motivated cab ride to his hometown of Pottsville.  His return engagement begins with his devoted music teacher, Mrs. C. (Anne Darragh), who shares headlines from the nearly 12 years since he moved to the west coast.  He is her success story and she serves as a surprisingly insightful mother figure.  She also has an adopted daughter, Tina (Monica Ho), who was once Robbie’s best friend with ambitious dreams of her own.  But Joe has visions of sold-out tours and five album deals and won’t leave his star act alone with his memories for long.

Lauren Yee’s The Song of the Summer —a romantic comedy with music — is certainly lighter than her breakthrough Cambodian Rock Band and might better fit this moment when audience members are trepidatiously returning to theaters.  Robbie and Tina have the lively chemistry of many odd couples. Robbie’s meandering decision-making is sheathed in luck while Tina’s more directed path has taken many unplanned hairpin turns.  Kahn in particular is a believably awkward and loving teen in flashbacks.  But though the playwright reveals the roots of Robbie’s self criticism and esteem issues, she only gives us the briefest whiff of his potential to climb out of the pit and blossom.  It’s a frustratingly thin resolution to Robbie’s genuine problems and our mostly enjoyable 90 minutes with him.

Mrs. C. (Anne Darragh*) and Robbie (Jeremy Kahn*) © Jessica Palopoli

Director Bill English employs his usual skill in developing all of the relationships.  Quieter connections are never overshadowed with comedic business.  His scenic design is equally artful in bringing small-town warmth and eccentricity to the visuals.  Mrs. C’s worn, skirted furniture fits her as well as her housecoat by costume designer Stephanie Dittbern.  And one can practically smell the beer and cigarettes in the tacky karaoke bar.  Projections by Teddy Hulsker slowly snap into place, filling out the setting.  The exception is a distracting and seemingly unnecessary hobo bag that constrains Tina’s movement in the critical final scenes.  

San Francisco Playhouse is thoughtfully offering this work On Demand as well as a live performance.  However, after serving up several beautifully filmed productions, this is delivered as a back-of-the-house live stream.  Whatever benefit is gained from the sense of immediacy is greatly offset by jerky camera work and flawed audio that loses many of Ms. Ho’s more intimate lines.   

The Song of the Summer is a good natured if slight diversion.  In-person performances at 450 Post Street in San Francisco have reduced audience capacity and safety protocols in place. The on-demand video stream will be available throughout the run which ends on August 14, 2021.  Tickets for either version begin at $15 and can be purchased at https://www.sfplayhouse.org/sfph/2020-2021-season/the-song-of-summer/.