Local playwright Megan Ann Jacobs’ stage comedy aMUSEd springs from kind of a fun premise. An apartment is haunted not by a ghost but by an immortal muse who has recently lost an author and collaborator who meant a lot to him. A woman moves into the apartment of the late writer to find herself in the presence of a haunting that she’d rather not have to deal with.
Jacobs’ script misses an opportunity to deliver a sophisticated comedy about the creative process in favor of a charming story of emotional loss and recovery. Director Raymond Bradford has worked with the ensemble to breathe life into some very heartfelt bits of dialogue between the apartment’s mismatched residents. William Molitor often appears stately and poised in the role of the muse, Sebastian. Katie Revae is vulnerably distant as his reluctant collaborator.
Though the script might suggest otherwise, there isn’t much of a transformation for either central character over the course of the production. The dynamic between the two actors feels more like a pair of characters who are getting acquainted with each other than a couple of people going through deep emotional change. It’s an interesting realization of a script that could have gone in an entirely different direction. There’s a concern that grows between the two characters that makes the dynamic work, even if it feels kind of stagnant in places. Revae and Molitor are capably aided by a small ensemble of a few others to tell a story of heart and humor that echoes warmth into the darkness.
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The Bay Players’ production of aMUSEd runs through Jan. 23 at the Whitefish Bay High School Auditorium, 1200 E. Fairmont Ave. For tickets, call 414-299-9040 or visit thebayplayers.com.
