A GIRL LIVES ALONE by Jessica Moss (Theatre Mischief). At the Theatre Centre Franco Boni Theatre. Aug 14 at 9 pm, Aug 18 at 10 pm, Aug 19 at 8:30 pm. See listing. Review: NNN
Jessica Moss‘s A Girl Lives Alone contains a lot of the ingredients for a funny-scary look at urban alienation and loneliness, but at this point they don’t all go together.
After a woman named Grace (Tiffany Deobald) is murdered in a New York City walkup, the building’s tenants are nervous, especially jaded newcomer Marion (Samantha Madely), who’s recently broken up with her boyfriend, and Janet (Moss), a friend of the victim who’s obsessed with the sitcom Friends. Both are a little suspicious of the upstairs foley artist (Andrew Musselman), whose sounds help add effects to the show itself.
Moss, who also directs, successfully captures urban anxiety and stress, and cleverly peppers the script with references to everything from Law And Order: Special Victims Unit, Psycho and Rosemary’s Baby.
But there’s no real attempt to solve the murder for one thing, there’s no detective. And surprisingly we learn little about Grace. Plus, the foley sounds and occasional jump scares are as often annoying and distracting as they are effective.
And while the eight-person cast is uneven, Moss brings energy and a quirky spin to all her lines, and Musselman effectively manages to suggest both concern and creepiness.
