The Realistic Joneses
Reviewed by Julia Stier
Rubicon Theatre Company
Through February 12
The Realistic Joneses, written by Will Eno, reads like a tame soap opera — inter-neighbor relations, secret illnesses, suspicion of affairs. But beneath its subtle drama, the play tackles a very real issue: the impact of illness on marriages. The Realistic Joneses, directed by Judy Hegarty-Lovett for the Rubicon Theatre Company, is a quiet story about the difficulties of caring for someone who is ill, and the connection we seek from others — either to commiserate about the experience, or to escape from it.
Not to say that this is a play about sickness, per say, only that the unspoken “burden” of being a caretaker-by-force plays a heavy hand in how these two couples operate.
When Jennifer (Sorcha Fox) and Bob (Joe Spano) meet their new neighbors Pony (Faline England) and John (Conor Lovett), rocky friendships are formed as both couples come to terms with an illness that plagues both men.
The Realistic Joneses premiered at the Yale Repertory Theatre in 2012, and went on to open on Broadway in 2014. Its current production at the Rubicon Theatre is being presented in association with Gare St. Lazare Ireland and the Laguna Playhouse.
The play finds its charm in its awkward comedy – a gift from the playwright, which the actors expertly play into. The dialogue is, at times, disjointed, and skillfully conveys the central theme of miscommunication. These people talk, but they’re not always saying something.
Perhaps Jennifer says it best when she declares: “We’re. . . I don’t know. . . sort of throwing words at each other.” However, while awkward pauses are definitely woven into the fabric of this play, there is still room for tightening up the pace a bit.
Fox and Spano are especially compelling as Jennifer and Bob. Their characters’ ease in each others’ presence relays a long history, one of complication and love. Jennifer’s frustration at having to take on the bulk of the work in sorting out Bob’s illness (due to his unwillingness to learn the details of his diagnosis) is palpable, yet she manages to stay just short of resentful. Meanwhile, England and Lovett as Pony and John have a flipped understanding — John will deal with his illness (the same one that plagues Bob), and Pony will stay willfully in the dark. These two bring a light heartedness that is in turns refreshing and frustrating. We can see them use their comedy to deflect, rather than deal with the circumstances life has dealt them.
Nothing major happens in the play, and that’s okay. At the risk of overusing the word, it’s a quiet show, but one with a lot of heart. It asks the question, when life throws our partner a curveball, will we rise to the challenge or bury our head in the sand?
Rubicon Theatre, 1006 E. Main Street, Ventura; Wed., 2 & 7 pm; Thurs., 7 pm; Fri., 8 pm; Sat., 8 pm; Sat. & Sun., 2 pm,; thru Feb.12; https://rubicontheatre.org, (805) 667-2900; Running time: approximately one hour and 45 minutes, with no intermission.
