Not/Now
Reviewed by Taylor Kass
Write Act Repertory
Through March 5
It’s every millennial’s worst nightmare — one tiny text typo and an entire friend group throws a surprise party for their bestie who they thought was now engaged, but who is very much not engaged. In Not/Now’s world-premiere production at Write Act Repertory, playwright Darrin Yalacki and director Amanda Blake Davis examine a dysfunctional yet hilarious friend group and peel back their layers of self-protective snark.
Goldie (Karen Baughn) is returning to her hometown of Chicago from sunny Los Angeles, but her life isn’t as perfect as her Instagram profile makes it seem. She’s just been dumped by her boyfriend (the latest in a serial-monogamist’s string of boyfriends) and is looking to her oldest friends for comfort — but they’re not so willing to let her get away with her self-sabotaging antics. Karen Baughn’s improv chops are firing on all cylinders as she portrays Goldie, the kind of girl who screams “Yasss queen!” at the gay bar and cries her fake eyelashes off after a long night. She’s undeniably the life of the party (even this disastrous one). However, Baughn shines so bright that the rest of the cast can’t quite match her attention-grabbing characterization. At times, the energy of the ensemble feel off-kilter, taking the air out of the pacing just as the play should get to its zaniest fever pitch moments.
As the friends consume more and more “gay water” (vodka and lemon-lime soda), the night
devolves into squabbles, past grievances are brought up, and a blindingly hot “exotic dancer” (Mason Eaglin) shows up. Tightly-wound Tamela (Rachel Lemos) lets it slip that she has started going to therapy, after previously denouncing every therapy participant as selfish and prone to proselytizing. Ten years post-grad, this friend group brandishes their self-awareness like a weapon, daring each other to point out flaws that they haven’t already found. Not/Now unveils the insecurities that lie underneath the carefully curated images of each of its characters, but the play ultimately balks at a truly friendship-ending confrontation. But maybe now is not the time to throw away friendships, even if they change.
The Brickhouse Theatre, 10950 Peach Grove St., North Hollywood; Sat., 8 pm; Sun., 3 pm; through Mar. 5. https://www.simpletix.com/e/not-now-tickets-122901. Running time: 90 minutes with no intermission.
