Playwright Lindsey Ferrentino states in the
program that she was inspired to write this story, in part, by her own Aunt,
who was Downs syndrome. As I reviewer, I have to point out that my Aunt also had
Downs syndrome, and was born only a decade or so before the characters here. I
don’t know if that effects my review, but I know that it effected my response,
and making Amy and the Orphans very relatable for me. It isn’t necessary, at all,
to be familiar with an individual to invest in this play – I just want to give
readers full knowledge that my review may be skewed.
Amy and the Orphans is not well served by the
poster for the show. It is not a happy go lucky three-person road show full of
pluck and sappy sentiments. Instead it is a tough but humorous story of the
response of children to their parents’ death.
Mark Blum and an almost unrecognizable Debra Monk are Jacob and Maggie,
adult siblings traveling back to Montauk for their father’s service. They meet
at La Guardia airport in order to drive to the pick up their Downs syndrome
sister, Amy, for the service.
 |
| Debra Monk. Jamie Brewer and Mark Bloom |
From the first moment, the tensions are
thick and the jokes are a little too numerous.
After her adult sons have moved out and her husband has divorced her,
Maggie is tough and unyielding. She is still made at Jacob for his actions at
their mother’s service. Jacob has gone full on Californian Christian, forsaking
his religion, heritage and gluten, not necessarily in that order. Before being
able to “get on the road” with an almost religious fervor, the duo must stop at
an institution and pick up Amy, their Downs syndrome sister. Both and moved out
of the area and rarely see their sister anymore. There is an unspoken dread at
the prospect.
Amy, in an excellent performance by Jamie
Brewer, proves to be more independent and headstrong than they remember. And
Amy comes with a care-giver that mandated by the state and loved by Amy, Kathy
(Vanessa Aspillaga in a wickedly funny
role). Kathy bows to neither sibling in her understanding or love of Amy. The
siblings project their own insecurities on Kathy and respond to them.
The play moves
between the airport, the institution, the road and their father’s house with
ease. In between are moments at the service and flashbacks to a couple in
therapy we only understand later are the parents in their youth.
Jacob and Maggie,
like their parents before them, struggle with what they owe to their sister.
How much are they willing to upend their lives to do the right thing, and what
is the right thing? The undercurrent, which rises up quickly, is that Amy is
not party to these decisions. Amy, however, has ideas of her own.
Ms. Ferrentino has
crafted a serious and funny piece about our expectations with regards to our
family. She and Director Scott Ellis have crafted a show with Jamie Brewer that
doesn’t seem forced, stereotypical or artificially positive. Ms. Brewer is in
command of her character bringing tartness normally and a sweetness in a
flashback that underscores how far she has had to grow.
I loved Amy and the
Orphans, as a complete show. It was not a performance piece that allows a Downs
syndrome actor to shine, which I feared it might be. Jacob and Maggie don’t
travel the expected (and trite) path that they learn some life lesson from their disabled
sister. Instead they have to confront their own expectations of each other and
their parents to move on.
Amy And The Orphans | Playwright: Lindsey Ferrentino | Director: Scott Ellis | Cast: Jamie Brewer, Debra Monk, Mark Blum, Vanessa Aspillaga, Diane Davis, Josh McDermitt
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