My overall impression
When the bumbling stage manager arrives on scene at the beginning the play, “It’s Important to Leave As Well” runs a bit like Durang’s “The Actor’s Nightmare.” The actress handling the role, who might have been the actual stage manager, not sure on that one, handles the chaos of awkward nothingness during a performance with ease, and it earned her some of the richest laughs of the performance. The play begins to take real form though in the second scene, where playwright Joshua Morrison begins a journey through a very compelling series of rehearsals, meant to guide the protagonist through his own personal relationship struggles. It’s an examination of art as therapy, and as the rehearsals progress, you begin to see Morrison has not channeled Christopher Durang, but rather Thornton Wilder, stage manager and all.
The play, directed quickly and successfully by Scott Marden, manages to stick the theatre community and companies under a humorous self-deprecating microscope, while dually creating an everyman tale of dealing with lost love that really hits hard at the end. The stand out performance comes from Fringe veteran Mikie Beatty(Spring Awakening, 2011 Fringe), who has truly proven himself an actor that can carry a show. The other actors each have their own wonderful moments in the show, as well.
You would be hard pressed to find a more thoughtful, original production at the Fringe. It’s certainly a play for lovers of theater and the acting process.
