By Kristen Nevarez Schweizer
October 29, 2024
“There are four doors on set—not five—so it’s not a farce,” I whisper to my husband as we enter North Coast Repertory Theatre’s Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help.
Usually, I walk into a show having researched the playwright, director, and time period. While I’m proudly 35 years old and have reviewed theatre for over a decade, the average NCRT audience member has attended plays since before I was born. I overeducate myself so my writing might provide something new to theatergoers who subscribe to Vanguard Culture.
But, full disclosure: my kids were out of town this weekend, so I’d been partying (AKA reading an Emily Henry novel with a glass of soju). I walked in unprepared as a (middle-aged) baby and double-down, deciding not to grab a playbill until after the show.
I bob to the pre-show Motown music and assess the cozy home set featuring a yellow oven and avocado-green couch with a macrame blanket. I guess, “1970s. Realism. Lower middle-class family drama.”
“It’s a comedy,” My husband of twelve years has accompanied me to enough shows to know a drama shouldn’t feature garish floral wallpaper.
“Small, smart cast. At least one local gem.” I suggest this because North Coast Repertory consistently casts terrific actors from all over the country alongside the best talent in San Diego.
The lights dim, but the packed house doesn’t silence yet. The opening matinee performance at NCRT is full of loyal, enthusiastic subscribers and press who whisper until the stage lights go up.
The show opens on a tableau of an Irish-American family. I was right, it’s a five-person story, including the two-time Craig Noel Award winner Shana Wride.
Young, enthusiastic narrator Linda O’Shea (luminous Samantha Gorjanc) enters the spotlight and provides us with the genre, “This is a memory play.”
A memory play is a theatrical work where the main character narrates a life event, usually directly addressing the audience. The term was coined by playwright Tennessee Williams to describe The Glass Menagerie. These are often non-linear, nostalgic, and emotive.
“Which means,” Linda O’Shea continues, “a lot of it is false.”
The audience laughs, and I squeeze my husband’s hand. He was more than right about it being a comedy. This meta script is wildly funny.
Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help follows four days with the O’Shea family, who scramble to cover up an unexpected predicament before it scandalizes their Catholic community. As secrets and mishaps pile up, each family member’s attempts to “help” only make things worse. With faith and family pride on the line, the O’Sheas must decide what matters more—keeping up appearances or sticking together. Hilarious and heartfelt, it’s a two-act story about the lengths we’ll go to protect our own.
It was delightful to see a fresh work featuring an intermission. It’s a puzzling trend that while movies are lengthening, new plays are now often 90 minutes with no intermission. This script’s pacing is perfect and allows Incident’s story to breathe, evolve, and resonate.
Veteran actor-turned-playwright Katie Forgette understands the comedic timing and the musicality required in ensemble dialogue. Her generous roles give each character a star moment. From purposely bad gumshoe impressions by cinema-obsessed tween sister Becky (local rising star Abbi Hoffpauir) to shouted one-liners from the ultimate Boomer dad (versatile playwright, author, and actor Tom Dugan also wears multiple hats in this show) to passive-aggressive commentary from the mother (brilliant Erin Noel Grennan), the believable yet heightened humor brings this family together even as circumstances threaten to rip them apart.
This script could translate successfully to film but is better live. The receptive audience bolsters the show with cheers and chuckles at retro references (Tupperware! Paul Anka!) and sounds of sympathy during light-hearted, relevant commentary on American politics, family dynamics, and religious oppression.
Whether one has been seeing theatre since the 1970s or this is their first play, Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a rollicking, purgative experience. Tickets can be found at northcoastrep.org through (recently extended) November 24, 2024.
