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‘Dead Man’s Cell Phone’ connects with audience
By Eric McCrea
As fall weather finally arrives, the curtains begin to rise across the Valley. Youngstown State University began its season with “Dead Man’s Cell Phone” by Sarah Ruhl.
Gordon, played by Mason Edmunds, is dead. That should come as no surprise, given the title of the play, but the journey that Jean (Abigail Kremm) takes after answering a dead man’s cellphone is full of surprises.
She inadvertently becomes the person to inform Gordon’s mother of his death, and after the funeral, she becomes tangled in the dearly departed’s life. She meets his family, consoles his widow and delivers messages that he never dispensed. When a work call takes her to Johannesburg and beyond, she must decide whose life she wants to live.
Kremm was fittingly meek as Jean, but at times it felt as if she let the lines steer her performance, instead of taking the reins herself. This changed in the second act when her character became more emboldened.
Edmunds was adept at playing dead, but an impressive monologue gave him sufficient time to emote. His character was a cross between a sleazy televangelist and Patrick Bateman. The contrast between his identity and the ghost sheet being filled by Jean was really what made this play substantial.
Jack Rusk was interesting as Dwight, Gordon’s brother. He was a nice fit with Kremm – even-tempered and kind. At first glance, he seems like he could easily blend in with the scenery, but his real talent is subtlety. In a scene with Jean, he was able to impressively change the tone from comedic to romantic with just the slightest change in body language and expression.
Molly Lukehart was larger than life as Gordon’s mourning mother, Mrs. Gottleib. She was fun and took chances, but her character felt as if it was written with a variety of idiosyncrasies instead of depth. Despite this, Lukehart was delightful.
Theresa Leonard was eclectically somber as Hermia, the widow. The character doesn’t get a lot of stage time, but Leonard was exceptional at being memorable.
Elena Loedding was a hoot as the mistress femme fatale. Her character is little more than an accent and some conflict, providing a few revelations, but Loedding had a fun time with it and brought the audience along.
Director Matthew Mazuroski amped up the creativity with choreographed scene changes, which in this show were pretty numerous. They were so much fun that I found myself looking forward to the next scene change just to see what they would do.
A simplified set left room for lighting and projections to be prominent. Costumes also were spot on.
The ending of the show became pretty convoluted. Things stopped making much sense after a certain point but remained fairly entertaining.
“Dead Man’s Cell Phone” will run Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and today and next Sunday at 2 p.m. For reservations, call 330-941-3105 or visit www.ysu.tix.com.