By KaTrina Jackson
The play Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike by Christopher Durang is one of three plays presented in BYU’s Contemporary Voices theater festival in Provo, Utah. As with the other two productions of this festival, it consists of minimal lighting and blocking, although a few props are used to show costumes in this production. The production also has the stage directions read by Katie Arnold, setting the stage for the play.
The play is a witty and hilarious story about three middle-aged siblings: Vanya, played by Daniel Mesta; Sonia, played by Alison Rino; and Masha, played by Rebecca Wing, who are reflecting on the states of their lives.
Vanya and Sonia have lived together ever since their parents passed away. They don’t work, they don’t go out, they don’t even clean their house. (The maid, Cassandra, played by Megan Smith, comes in once a week to do just that.) The two only bicker and gaze out their front window at the pond, watching for a blue heron, who never appears during the play.
Their lives are upended when Masha arrives, along with her “beloved” young boyfriend, Spike, played by Ren Cottam.Masha is an actress who has lived a very productive life, being featured in movies and plays, has had five husbands, and earns big money to pay for her parents’ house. For the quiet Vanya and the equally quiet but also quite dramatic Sonia, their sister coming to visit shatters their peaceful little world.
First, there is Spike, who is a distraction to everyone. Then a costume party, where Masha insists that everyone dress as characters from the Disney-animated-film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs because she is going as Snow White and everyone else must support her in her role. She even forces Nina, played by Kristian Huff, to change from her princess costume into Dopey the Dwarf so that she matches the theme. (Spike met Nina, a girl visiting her aunt and uncle across the street, when he goes swimming in the siblings’ pond.) Sonia, who was originally forced to be Dopey, decides to pick her own costume and goes as the Evil Queen; only she completely upstages Masha by dressing in a beautiful gown and pretending to be Maggie Smith as the Evil Queen. Rino’s impersonation of Maggie Smith is incredible and makes the part not only convincing but hilarious, and the small props used to help the audience recognize the costumes add a sparkle to the production.
The second act focuses mostly on the drama the family members have among themselves. Cassandra, who up until this point had mostly annoyed the siblings by predicting terrible things that would happen, starts using a voodoo doll to wreak havoc on Masha, who wants to sell her parents’ house. Every time Cassandra stabs a pin in the doll, Masha shrieks, paranoid about pins in the air attacking her.
Also in the second act, Nina convinces Vanya to read Nina his play, which he does. They then do a readthrough of said play, the story of a lonely molecule after the earth has been destroyed, but they are interrupted by Spike, who’s texting on his phone. For the three older siblings, especially Vanya, this is seen as incredibly offensive, and he goes on a tirade about how things were better in his generation because the meaningless nothingness (i.e. their entertainment) that people would do at least brought them all together because they all watched the same meaningless entertainment. Vanya’s tirade consists of the most words that quiet peacekeeping Vanya says the entire play.
Directed by Tony Gunn with assistance by Alex Glover, this play has elements of Chekhov’s plays, including Russian names, but with a 21st century twist. The characters are likeable, even if they are surly in their older age. Masha is the most aggressive with her personality but mellows at the end of the play, a transition Wing pulls off well.
The comedy also hits on many deeper themes, which the audience discussed with the festival dramaturg, Shelley Graham,in a post-show discussion. Some of these themes include reflecting on the past while looking forward to the future with hope, how doing “nothing” together creates meaning, and that we are all molecules in this journey together.
Vonya and Sonia and Masha and Spike is an absurdist play with deeper themes that help modern audiences think about the true meaning of family and the endurance of hope, despite the situations we may now be in. It is a funny but heartwarming reflection of a family simply trying to figure out how to be there for each other. Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike will be performed again on January 18 at 7:30 PM in the Nelke Theatre on BYU campus. Please go see it if you get the chance!
Rated PG-13 for some swearing and multiple mentions of sex and sexuality. Recommended for ages 14 and older.
Brigham Young University Arts presents Contemporary Voices: Play Readings from Award-Winning Scripts: Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.
Brigham Young University, Nelke Theatre, 800 E Campus Dr, Provo, UT 84602
January 9–11, 16–18, 2020, 7:30 PM
Get Tickets: $5
BYU Arts Facebook Page
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