Salt Lake Acting Company’s Bald Sisters is a Powerful and Funny Family Drama

By Jason and Alisha Hagey, Front Row Reviewers

Salt Lake Acting Company’s (SLAC) production of Bald Sisters is a uniquely personal play that takes its audience on a rollercoaster of emotions, challenging perceptions and celebrating the bonds that unite us all. As a child of Cambodian refugees, Vichet Chum (Playwright) tackles the aftermath of the Pol Pot and Khmer Rouge genocide with a perfect blend of humor, heartache, and hope. Set years later, a mother and her daughters still feel the effects of these mass killings deep in their emotional and psychological DNA. Chum crafts a slice-of-life play about the complexities of sisterhood, identity, love, and resilience with unparalleled depth, integrity, and karaoke.

Grappling with an exquisite, delicate text, Seonjae Kim (Director) navigates the crests and troughs of human relations with a masterful direction. She creates an intimate world, inviting us into its inhabitants’ imperfect lives, permitting us to live there with them, feel their anxieties, and understand their fears. Kim allows the dialogue to crackle with its wit and wisdom, giving pause long enough in the scenes for the audience to ponder the questions posed, then reveling in the splendor of everyday moments. It might be an odd activity to call attention to, but Kim’s direction of the transitions is brilliant. There is never a wasted moment. Objects (like chairs) represent multiple spaces and can do so from one scene to the next without getting muddy. There is clarity in the direction of these moments, which adds depth to the text. Kim makes the production feel alive and unexpectedly immersive.

The story opens with the death of Keiko Shimosato-Carreiro (Ma). Wise-cracking until her last word (“Oops”), Shimosato-Carreiro keeps us laughing and continues to do so in every flashback she is in. There is a levity in her character that helps the audience navigate the hell and reality of being a refugee. So much tenderness (and a fondness for her favorite expletive) gives her exploration of character a lovable, even affable, approach. 

The titular sisters transport us beyond tragedy into the world of survival. Wendy Dang (Him – pronounced like the word ‘theme’ without the t) is perfection. You love her all while being frustrated with her character’s decisions. Dang is given a remarkably well-written role rich in dialogue and history. She does Him justice. She radiates with inner tension from one moment to the next. She is electric. Audrey Pan (Sophea) is a firecracker from the moment she speaks on stage. Sophea is fiery and fierce, but there’s a luscious soft spot in her that she tucks away to protect her insecurities. Pan produces a balanced, sympathetic foil to Dang’s personality. She captures Sophea with all her quirks and misgivings and plays them with deft attention to every movement. The slightest gesture, the most negligible facial expression, is at her command.

David Knoell (Nate) is a chameleon, but he doesn’t disappear into the background. Instead, he makes every character memorably, but diversely, his own. We saw him in last year’s SLAC productions of Hairy and Sherri and A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, where Knoell played utterly different characters to his Nate – and those performances, like this one, stay with us. Knoell inhabits his characters and makes them singular and unforgettable.

Making his SLAC debut, Alec Kalled (Seth) is endearing. The writing, mixed with his line delivery, has you in stitches. He brings an earnestness to the role that makes you want to hire him to mow your lawn (bad edges and all). 

Gage Williams (Scenic Design), Jesse Portillo (Light Design), Alicia Kondrick (Costume Design), and Jennifer Jackson (Sound Design) work together in perfect harmony. Pulling out one detail over another within this nuanced production is challenging. Whether it is the textural layers found within the set or the sound of the gong ushering us into a new scene, everything worked in tandem. Each rich layer of design tells a greater story. Light is used as a transitional tool for location and highlighting the differences between the characters. But it’s never light alone. Sound comes with each moment to intensify the thematic moments. 

Bald Sisters is an irreverent comedy with poignant experiences that ring true. Ultimately, Wendy Dang carries us through a glorious landscape with her resonant and heartfelt portrayal of Him. Bald Sisters is touching. It is laugh-out-loud funny. It is heartbreaking and life-affirming all at the same time. Don’t let your last words be, ”Oops,” and miss out on experiencing this beautiful production. SLAC once again demonstrates why it is one of the best, if not the best, theatre companies in Utah. 

*The show runs about 90-minutes without an intermission
*There is adult language throughout the show

Salt Lake Acting Company Presents  Bald Sisters by Vichet Chum
Salt Lake Acting Company – Upstairs Theatre – 168 West 500 North, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84103
April 10th to May 5th, 2024
Dark Monday’s and Tuesday’s. They will have a Tuesday performance on Tuesday, April 23^rd as well as a Saturday matinee at 2 PM on April 20^th. Shows at 1 PM and 6 PM on Sunday’s. 
Ticket Cost: $29-46
Box Office Phone: 801.363.7522
Box Office Email: info@saltlakeactingcompany.org
Open 11am – 5pm, Mon – Fri
SLAC Website
SLAC Facebook Page
SLAC Instagram Page

Accessibility Information:
Open Captioned Performance: April 28^th at 6 PM
Audio Described Performance: April 21^st at 6 PM
Sensory Performance: April 20^th at 2 PM
ASL Interpreted Performance: April 14^th at 6 PM

Further accessibility information is available on our website, or by contacting our Accessibility Coordinator Emily Sinclair at Emily@SaltLakeActingCompany.Org