Getting There

Reviewed by Dana Martin
Hudson Guild Theatre as part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival
Through June 24

Rebecca O’Brien is determined to survive. Getting There, written and performed by O’Brien and directed by Cameron Watson, is a story that circles the biggest battle of her life: breast cancer. The one-hour solo show is part of the Hollywood Fringe Festival and is now playing at the Hudson Guild Theatre.

Rebecca O’Brien is a self-reliant woman who happens to be broke and have cancer. After leaving her unsupportive partner in the midst of her life-changing diagnosis, she sets off to save her own life with her service dog Stella at her side. While riding the L.A city bus back and forth from chemotherapy appointments, O’Brien discovers an unexpected support system, often in unexpected ways and from total strangers.

The narrative jumps back and forth through time, blending fragments of O’Brien’s childhood, trips to the local grocery store, divine encounters with misfits, outcasts and strangers.

O’Brien claims the story isn’t about cancer, but it looms. Her story unfolds in her preparation for battle — and the toll in its aftermath. She finds solace and support that appears almost out of thin air exactly when she needs it most.

O’Brien is an engaging performer with a brand humor that’s a blend of cute and crude. She embodies a variety of characters, focusing primarily on vocal variation and slight physical embodiment, often veering into caricature. She’s at her most compelling when she is directly dealing with the pain, difficulty and catharsis of her experience — but she rarely allows the action to remain down long enough to explore it.

Director Cameron Watson finds full use of space with clean, clear and direct staging. The set and lights are simple and suffice. Slide projections are used liberally throughout, which sometimes distract from the performance.

Getting There is a story hope, the power of human kindness, and of survival. O’Brien jokes that being broke is worse than having cancer— but it’s those very hardships and hard-fought battles that shape her life and give her the strength that she needs to keep on fighting.

Hudson Guild Theatre; 6539 Santa Monica Blvd.; Hollywood; June 15, 8:30 pm, June 18, 1 pm, June 24, 3 pm. https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/7059. Running time: one hour with no intermission.