By Michael Buzzelli
Late one night, Sheila (Tracey Maina) and her brother David (Andrew Perfetti) come home drunk from a party and lie down in the park in front of his home. Strangely, with no real explanation, Sheila and David become rooted to the spot in Agnes Borinsky’s “The Trees.”
A crowd gathers to see the unusual situation, as David and Sheila cannot move from their spot. Their Grandmother (Yide Liu), who speaks Polish, is among the first to camp out with her grandchildren.
Julian (Thomas Sirianni) reads about the duo in the newspaper and shows up to see the spectacle. Others are drawn to them.
Norman (Griffin Maley) finds the siblings while cruising the park. Sheila’s friend Charlotte (Lizzy Boulos) shows up to help out. Rabbi Saul (Mayce Lee) drives from Cleveland to Connecticut to meet with them. She feels a spiritual connection to the two of them, mostly Sheila. A vendor salesman, Terry (Seth Pittsburg, no H), shows up selling chips, bottled water, and paninis.
Tavish (Jay Remenih) tags along with Julian, and David’s boyfriend, Jared (Nathan Jacobs-Hyman), shows up to break up with him, but keeps coming back to visit.
Sheryl (Maddie Colucci), mentioned earlier, appears in the second act.
Ezra (Nate Feldman) also shows up in the second act (but spoilers prevent this review from revealing more).
The siblings create a queer forest of Arden, where Bohemians flock to support and care for the human trees.
promotional material for “The Trees.”Though the show starts with an absurd problem, the show is rooted (pardon the pun) in realistic relationships. It’s weird, but fun.
The cast is superb (the length of this review prohibits this reviewer from individually calling out each of them, but we will cover some of the best).
Maina and Liu have a conversation in Polish! It’s amazing to watch Maina ride a wave between English and Polish. It’s astonishing to watch. Polish tutor Kornelia Gondek worked with the actors to get the accents right.
Maina and Perfetti have a great dynamic. They are comfortable with each other, bickering like real siblings. Perfetti is a master of the pregnant pause. He delivers his lines with thoughtful elegance.
While every character gets to jab and thrust in rapid-fire witty lines, Maley’s Norman is the biggest comic relief. He knows his way around a joke.
Lee’s Saul has the headiest material as her character struggles with her relationship with God, finding something deep and meaningful at Sheila’s side.
The stage space is transformed into an idyllic, pastoral scene by Liza Brown (with Britton Mauk, one of Pittsburgh’s prolific scenic designers).
“The Trees” is expertly directed by Natasha Cole. She keeps things light, even when the characters are discussing loneliness, the nature of love, and myriad existential crises.
Borinsky’s script is odd. She never explains the situation, but she also doesn’t sensationalize it. It’s an allegory, a fable, or a fairy tale told in modern times. The trick is not to get hung up on the mechanics of the show’s magic and to go with the flow. She doesn’t answer questions; she creates situations for characters to explore.
It’s easy to get hung up on how the characters eat, defecate, and make love to their perspective partners, but it’s best not to think too hard about it.
“The Trees” isn’t for everyone. If you use the word “woke” as a pejorative, this show isn’t for you. There are so many LGBTQ characters in “The Trees,” you could almost hear Emily Montgomery (Joan Cusack in “In & Out”) running out into the street and crying out, “Is everybody gay?!!?”
The show has more gay characters than “Kinky Boots” and “La Cage Aux Folles” combined, and that is a good thing. For everyone who doesn’t normally see themselves in media, “The Trees” is required viewing.
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