South Park Theatre is a bit of a drive from Pittsburgh proper, but I recently caught their production of Now & Then by Sean Grennan. This show, directed by Allison M. Weakland, was an interesting combination of some of the different possibilities in theatre. The show itself is predictable, with the lines almost saying themselves as situations arose, putting the audience into a state of thinking, “ah, well, this is probably going to lead to this,” and then that situation would go exactly where I expected it to go. I don’t think the show is going to be revolutionary to any audiences, but there were plenty of folks who do stand out in this production. The set, designed by Amber Kocher, dressed the stage beautifully. Upon entrance to the theatre, I knew the exact bar this show was channeling; that quasi-Irish themed pub that had an arcade machine and could exist in any timeframe, be it nouveau or retro. Although the set worked in the show’s favor, some other elements were left to be desired, things that would elevate this potentially weird and interesting piece of theatre.

Now & Then is, at its core, a classic time travel story, including the strange technology and deep regret that accompanies all time travel storylines. Time travel isn’t something shocking in this show; it’s picked up almost as soon as young Jamie, played by Erick Rigby, interacts with his future counterpart, played by Brian Kadlecik. This essential element is obvious and weird, and I wished some sound had accompanied the initial lighting cue for the time travel. As it was, the very sci-fi concept that defines the show was underwritten, and I feel like if you’re committing to a sci-fi script, you might as well lean into it. Now & Then exists in a space that doesn’t realize what it could be. If you were to make it that B-horror flick we’ve all seen, full throttle time travel theatre, that would be something new. In my experience, few stage shows include a device which shoots you back in time forty years, and if you are choosing to do that show, don’t shy away from the wackiness. It’s hard to do camp without any camp.

The women in the cast were bright spots in the show, with Chelsea Bartel appearing as the younger Abby and Joyce Miller playing the elder Abby. The first act sets up the reasons for all the time travel and, the pitfalls of the script notwithstanding, we find that Jamie of the future is dissatisfied with how things turned out. He has come back to fix things to the best of his ability and at the end of the first act, his wife, the future Abby follows him to the past to reprimand him. Joyce Miller shines in this role, after getting through the first act, she is spunky and full of vigor, something the show benefits from. She and Bartel seem like the glue of this cast, without them it might just all unravel. Bartel plays the optimistic young Abby and creates a wistful dream of the future with this character. We know her, the sweet twenty-something with big dreams and stars in her eyes, and Bartel delivers. That being said, the show is slow and plodding, we need these bright spots because without them the over-simplified script would be impossible to watch.

This production of Now & Then almost feels like it doesn’t quite know how to navigate being science fiction, as though it thinks it’s a sitcom without much else going on. There’s so much potential with a script like this, to make it something you haven’t seen, but I didn’t get that feeling from this show. The show was fun, it has a fun premise and funny characters, and it wants to tell you not to waste the time you’re given. And maybe that’s enough.

You can catch Now & Then at the South Park Theatre, Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 pm and Sunday at 2 pm until September 29^th.

Categories: Archived Reviews

Tags: FallwithPITR, Now and Then, South Park Theatre