VIDEO – GO SEE A PLAY, ANY PLAY –
March 30, 2022 – What the playwright lacks in tech savvy, she makes up for in her portrayal of a Latinx family from Philly. The play’s strongest moments are when cousins Elliot and Yazmin are alone, joking and reminiscing the way only close family members can. Part-time actor Elliot is repeatedly taunted by Yazmin for a Colgate commercial he did, and Elliot seems equally amused by how the family still loves Yazmin’s ex-husband. DeAngeles and Maria have a great sibling chemistry that makes these moments feel real.
Still, one has to wonder why Yazmin doesn’t receive the same development as Elliot. With the latter’s life and career known even to those HaikuMom sponsors, Yazmin’s relationship and career—former composer-turned-music-professor—are only briefly touched upon. In fact, the play ends with her making a decision that almost seems like a surrender. There are similar moments when HaikuMom seems like a poor moderator when Orangutan and Chutes&Ladders begin putting the screws to FountainHead, even if they do so as way of putting his narcissism in check.
