Theater review by Raven Snook
Monsters lurk in a decrepit basement in Theresa Rebeck's domestic thriller Downstairs, but they don't pop out of the darkness: They hide in plain sight. Underemployed and seemingly unstable Teddy (Tim Daly) is crashing in the cellar of his repressed sister, Irene (Tyne Daly), against the wishes of her controlling husband, Gerry (John Procaccino). By turns antsy, arrogant and aggressive, Teddy is incapable of giving Irene straight answers to her reasonable questions (how long is he going to stay?), but she doesn't mind because she loves taking care of him. Soon, however, his presence forces her to confront upsetting truths about their shared history and her own unexplored life.
Rebeck wrote Downstairs expressly for the real-life Daly siblings, who had never shared a stage until the play's world premiere at the Dorset Theatre Festival last year. As an acting showcase, it serves its purpose—especially for Tyne, who defies her usual strong-woman typecasting by playing a character who starts out so meek you expect her to run off with the mice. But as a play, Downstairs needs some renovating. The suspense is hit-and-miss: Director Adrienne Campbell-Holt injects some nifty jolts (it's truly scary the first time you see Gerry—or rather, his shoes—standing menacingly at the top of the stairs), but slack pacing often kills the chills.
The play toys with intriguing ideas like the oppressiveness of loneliness, the difficulty of connection and how challenging it can be for some people to distinguish reality from imagination; Teddy even evokes religious imagery, implying something supernatural, but the denouement doesn't induce an epiphany. Like its central siblings, Downstairs still seems to be trying to find itself. A more interesting version may be skulking in the shadows somewhere; perhaps Rebeck will keep looking.
Cherry Lane Theatre (Off Broadway). By Theresa Rebeck. Directed by Adrienne Campbell-Holt. With Tyne Daly, Tim Daly, John Procaccino. Running time: 1hr 45mins. No intermission.
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