Dark Comedy of Dystopian Love

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Image: theconstructivists.org

The Constructivists - "Babel"

The Constructivists explore human relations bioethics with playwright Jacqueline Goldfinger’s darkly funny dystopian drama Babel. A couple of couples have been having difficulty getting pregnant. The concerns of parenthood are complicated in a dystopian world where genetics are rigorously tested before birth. Goldifnger’s script covers abstract concepts like eugenics, the value of life and the nature of love in a way that feels remarkably vivid, visceral and immediate. Director Jaimelyn Gray delicately weaves together a variety of different elements that render a truly unique and provocative dramatic experience on a small, intimate stage.

Maya Danks and Nicole McCarty play Dani and Rene: two women who have been together for something like a decade. Danks is stunningly sharp as a very tightly wound Dani who contrasts against a more emotionally thoughtful Rene, brought to the stage with loving complexity by McCarty. As the play opens, Dani and Rene are expecting. The baby fits all genetic benchmarks for basic health, but there are other serious concerns. Do they scrub the pregnancy and start over?

Logan Milway and Ashley Oviedo play Jamie and Ann. Ann works with Dani. The two couples casually meet over drinks and compare notes on the difficulties of potential parenthood in an age of so much prenatal information. Milway is an admirably strong emotional anchor for his quarter of the drama. Oviedo and Danks share some of the more breathtaking moments of drama onstage as tensions between home and office increase over coffee. A tenuous world demands a perfection. People aren’t perfect. It’s a splendidly dark comedy of the type that so rarely makes it to local theatre.

The Constructivists’ production of Babel runs through April 2 at the Broadway Theatre Center Studio, 158 N. Broadway. For more information, visit www.theconstructivists.org or call (414) 858-6874.