REVIEW: "Kin"

"It's awful, isn't it? Getting to know someone."

You're not quite sure what you're getting when the house lights have been dim for the first few moments but it proves to not disappoint. Bathsheba Doran's latest, "Kin," revolves around Anna, an Ivy League scholar, and Sean, an Irish personal trainer, who become involved in a relationship that appears to be both inconceivable and doomed to fail. The rich supporting characters include: Anna's long-time friend, Helena, who is seemingly unhappy about Anna's success (Anna would tell you otherwise); Sean's mother, Linda, unsuccessfully dealing with a past trauma back in Ireland; Anna's father, Adam, a military Texan whose moment of vulnerability has a hold on Anna; Sean's uncle Max; Adam's confidant/possible lover Kay; Sean's ex-girlfriend Rachel; Anna's faculty advisor Simon; and Gideon, the North Carolina hunter Helena encounters during her commune with nature.

One would think that the subject matter can get weighty but there are well-placed moments of levity like Helena auditioning for the role of Helena in "Midsummer Night's Dream" and Sean giving his uncle cardio training. On the surface, all of the relationships are filled with tension because of some underlying damage that is revealed but there is a hope that persists. And it is a nagging hope that keeps you drawn in.

"Falling in love, a friend said to me, is like having someone poke around the dark corners of your house where you don’t want anyone looking." - Bathsheba Doran on "Kin"

The story unfolds as a series of vignettes over several years and the entire cast gets involved with moving the set pieces around. Sitting in the fourth row during the performance, I even got to experience an Irish mist - it was figuratively and literally cool!

What I enjoyed most about "Kin" is that as an audience member, you will know somebody like those portrayed and, so there, exists an immediate familiarity. You will also not mind that the run time is nearly two hours and that there is no intermission.

Seriously, you won't mind at all.

"Kin"
Director: Sam Gold
Cast: Suzanne Bertish, Bill Buell, Kristen Bush, Patch Darragh, Kit Flanagan, Laura Heisler, Matthew Rauch, Cotter Smith, and Molly Ward
Playwrights Horizons
416 W 42nd St.
Now until April 3rd