Review: Normal Ave’s “Completeness” Manages to Redefine Normal
Katherine Hebert
Contributing New York Critic
Normal Ave, a relatively young company has started off their third season with a production of “Completeness” that is sure to affect audiences of all ages. Written by Itmar Moses and directed by Jeremy Landes “Completeness” is a love letter to non-committal relationships with a relevant exploration of how the millennial generation approaches or rather avoids approaching relationships. To set the scene, two hyper-intelligent grad students one a computer scientist (Elliot) and a molecular biologist (Molly) meet in a computer lab late one night and what ensues after that is a common millennial story of missed connections told through a unique lens and authentic lens. The piece utilizes its framing device, two scientists working on an experiment together, as a means to portray multiple conversations about the scientific method as well as their specific experiments. These sequences of scientific lectures act as fitting metaphors for the anxieties of a generation that avoids entering into serious relationships in lieu of the infinite possibilities that come with remaining available.
Despite it’s relatability to a younger audience this is a show that is hard to execute without a very strong and capable team. “Completeness” is a piece about miscommunication in the modern age. As a result conversations that are directly about relationships are few and far in between, in their place are monologues about molecular biology and various unsolvable problems prevalent in the computer science community. Because of this with the wrong director and wrong actors “Completeness” would be a very dull sit. This is a criticism that I have seen levied at previous productions of this piece. Luckily Jeremy Landes’s direction manages to keep the actors from falling into these potential beartraps by keeping them in constant motion and putting the weight not on what is being said but what is not being said. In Landes’s interpretation of “Completeness” the delivery is rapid fire, giving the moments of silence true value.
But, this is a show that will live or die by how believable the chemistry between its leads is. Fortunately, Paige Sciarrino (Molly) and Tom Hayes (Elliot) breathe life into what could have easily been a pair of tropey over passionate grad students. With Sciarrino approaching Molly as a free-spirited, impulsive passionate young woman and Hayes bringing a level of humor and honesty to the indecisive Elliot. Their chemistry is palpable and their relationship honest. Both actors breeze through their monologues about the “Traveling Salesman Theory” and the intricacies of protein bonding with genuine enthusiasm and excitement, drawing the audience into what could potentially have been a moment to zone out. Watching the two playoff each other alone is worth the price of admission. In supporting roles Nancy Sun (Lauren) and Zack Houston (Jon) both bring a good amount of humor and levity to the piece overall without sacrificing authenticity. Watching this cast you get a sense that all involved really did their homework and committed to this project wholly and that level of commitment really pays off in the final project. This accompanied with an impressive design team really ties the piece together. The lighting design by Ethan Newman is a testament to what can be done with a limited budget and a lot of skill while Eden Taylor’s costume design communicates everything we need to know about these characters at first glance. But one hidden gem of this production are the original compositions by Zack Pierson who also did the sound design.
I had the opportunity to discuss “Completeness” with Jeremy Landes as well as many other cast members and when asked why this piece was selected Landes said “We’re a young company and we want to tell young stories so when this piece came across for season selection I thought that it was such a beautiful, unique way to tell this very common millennial story of missed connections through the lens of something that is very different from what we normally see.” Normal Ave.’s tagline is “Redefining Normal” and frankly I think that’s exactly what they’ve done with this piece. As a play “Completeness” is a familiar story for a generation of young people prone to isolation, rampant comparisons and an avoidance of settling down. Itmar Moses’s writing manages to raise questions about the improbability of finding happiness when there are so many variables using conversations about protein bonding and TAP as metaphors for various millennial gripes about the concept of monogamy and the complexity of finding meaningful connections. Normal Ave takes this piece and approaches it with honesty and empathy.
When asked Sciarrino (Molly) described her character’s plight as being one of “infinite possibilities” saying “The idea of infinite possibilities prevent people from committing and that is something that is beautifully woven into this plot.” I find myself agreeing with her, because these characters are hyperintelligent all they see are the innumerable variables and not the potential for a relationship or as Landes described it “looking at elevated possibilities rather than content realities”. It’s important to note that these problems aren’t exclusive to the hyperintelligent but looking at this very typical, very millennial problem through the lens of a microbiologist studying yeast gives a familiar problem a fresh perspective. Using this almost scientific approach to what the dating world is for millennials now grants the audience a funny, familiar and cathartic ride.
In short “Completeness” is touching, honest and incredibly relevant. This is not a production to miss for anyone who is still bogged by the “what ifs” of their relational past nor one to miss for anyone who ghosts or has been ghosted.
Be sure to catch it at the Medicine Show Theatre in its final weekend (October 26th- 28th).