Carolina Rodriguez and Casey Morris (Photo by Amelia Mulkey)
Reviewed by Steven Vargas
Ruskin Group Theatre Arts Center
Through May 17
Carolina Rodriguez and Casey Morris (Photo by Amelia Mulkey)
In Stephen Fife’s Blue Kiss, Todd (Casey Morris), the play’s pivotal character, has successfully run away from his past, or so he thought. When he decides to tutor an eager student for her SATs, the extra cash he earns comes with a deadly cost that forces him to confront his biggest regrets.
Currently at Ruskin Group Theatre, the play centers on a single tutoring lesson between Todd and Susan (Carolina Rodriguez). Susan tells him she is trying to enhance her writing abilities for the next SAT — but she is already a splendid writer. Todd considers taking her under his wing, but as he gets to know her, it becomes clear that she knows more about him than he thought. The play is full of suspense and thrill, but its structure turns its cat-and-mouse dynamic into a monotonous game of catch.
Morris and Rodriguez inhabit their characters well, building strong masks. Morris embodies the role of a neurotic teacher with ease. He’s slightly clumsy with his words and easily made nervous. His desire to tether to furniture reflects this. Meanwhile, Rodriguez is surprisingly confident, wielding her sureness with assured strides around a home that isn’t her own.
Ryan Wilson’s set design amplifies their dynamic. The room is covered in books and furniture whose placement helps create distance between the two, who fear that bridging the gap between their stories — and bodies — could be disastrous. Meanwhile, books become the thing that brings them together. Todd yearns to offer Susan assistance with his favorite writers. Susan’s own words spark joy in Todd. Fife’s writing reflects a love for literature and adds layers to the characters as their relationship to words comes to the surface.
The primary conflict of the play is unclear, however. Blue Kiss begins with an awkward first interaction. It hints at sexual tension, then quickly changes course after the first ten minutes. This puts the viewer at square one in trying to understand the real tension of the story.
Once Todd calls Susan’s bluff by identifying her prowess with words, Susan reveals that she is the ex of Todd’s youngest brother. Todd hasn’t been in contact with his brother for years after he, Todd, was blamed for his other sibling’s death. Susan, whose real name is Lyla, also reveals that her father killed her mother and himself one night, turning her into a tortured writer who aspires to be one of the greats. She uses this trauma to drive her forward. She demands the truth from Todd about his sibling’s untimely death. However, her desire for a first-hand account feels misguided. What is it that she really gains? She suggests that she could satisfy her ex with it, but how that advances her own motivations gets lost in the thrill.
The play is made up of false resolutions. Moreover, Susan’s unclear intentions create a constant tug-and-pull between the two that feels directionless. She charges at Todd multiple times (with and without a weapon), ultimately conceding to his perspective of the story each time. The first instance of this is exciting, but once it becomes a pattern, it loses its glamour. Nothing seems to satisfy her, and they’re at it again.
Morris’s final admission about what happened on the day of the accident is heartbreaking. Each time he speaks about it, he sits, the emotional memories passing through his face. His cry is felt deep within. His stillness gives him the strength to take control of his narrative. These final moments of Blue Kiss are quick and powerfully enticing.
Ruskin Group Theatre’s production of Blue Kiss tends to lag despite its tension-filled premise. The strength of the work comes in the leading actors’ dedication to their dynamic. They feel lived in and full of energy. However, the energy the duo crafts bursts in all directions, unclear where to land.
In Fife’s program statement, he shares that he wrote the play in response to witnessing terrible events “that change people’s lives forever.” He grapples with the repercussions of tragedy in his play, but it’s difficult to understand what the characters learn from this tragedy.
As Susan wails with guilt in the final moment, there are hints of an answer: Fate sucks. But is it worth torturing Todd, her ex’s brother, to determine this? Without an answer, Susan’s motives suffer under the weight of tragedy itself.
Ruskin Group Theatre, 2800 Airport Ave., Santa Monica. Fri.-Sat., 8 pm, Sun., 2 pm; thru May 17. Runtime: 70 minutes, no intermission. http://www.ruskingrouptheatre.com
