Thespian Thoughts – KIN – Theatre Review by Sandro Monetti

KIN
When you are carrying heavy emotional baggage, all relationships can be a struggle – as this thought provoking play proves all too well.
– Theatre review by SANDRO MONETTI

Kin follows ten characters longing for connections with relatives, lovers and friends only to find obstacles repeatedly tripping them up.

It starts with literary scholar Anna (an engaging Melissa Collins) who after been rudely dumped by her poetry professor embarks on a new romance with a fitness trainer and as we gradually meet his and her families, who are from two very different worlds, it’s clear they face long odds to make things work.

As each scene unfolds, the characters who are not involved in the action remain at the side and rear of the stage, not quite out of sight but serving as a reminder of the way our kin always stay in our thoughts.

Special praise is due to the fluid direction of Jules Aaron and the perfect costume design of Michele Young.

There are strong performances all round with stands outs including Elizabeth Lande as a sad and struggling actress, David Hunt Stafford as a tightly wound military colonel and seemingly distant father and Rhonda Lord as a loving mother still shattered by a long ago trauma.

Mixed in with all this drama are some lighter moments too and the clever script – by New York based British writer Bathsheba Doran – could have been mined further for some comedic gold.

But as an exploration of love, loss, loneliness, envy and insecurity, Kin comes up with the goods.

CAST

Alan Aymie, Melissa Collins, John Combs, Alice Cutler, Luise Heath, Elizabeth Lande, Rhonda Lord, Grinnell Morris, David Hunt Stafford

CREDITS
Writer – Bathsheba Doran
Directer – Jules Aaaron
Producer – David Hunt Stafford
Assistant Director – Sherry Netherland
Stage Manager – Michael Frank
Assistant Stage Manager – Don Solosan
Set Designer – Jeff G. Rack
Lighting Designer – Ric Zimmerman
Sound Designer – Bill Froggatt
Costume Designer – Michele Young
Publicity – Philip Sokoloff
Photos – Ed Krieger

KIN

Presented by Theatre 40. Written by Bathsheba Doran. Directed by Jules Aaaron.
Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, Sundays at 2pm until October 27.
At Theatre 40, 241 S. Moreno Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90212
Tickets $24 on Thurs and Fri, $26 on Sat and Sun
Order Tickets at 310 364 0535 or Theatre 40

Thespian Thoughts is a theatre review article on Actors Entertainment, a channel on the Actors Podcast Network, a Pepper Jay Production.