THE WAY WE GET BY

Ego Actus
www.egoactus.com
Presents
THE WAY WE GET BY
By NEIL LABUTE

March 31 – April 14, 2019

Urban Stages
259 W. 30th Street (between 7th & 8th Aves.) NYC
Tickets: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4109159

Directed by KIM T. SHARP
Scenic Design by DUANE PAGANO
Lighting and Sound Design by JOHN SALUTZ
Stage Manager JOHANNA GRIESÉ
Press Representative SCOTTI RHODES

Cast
Francesca Ravera – André Vauthey

Neil Labute’s THE WAY WE GET BY is essentially an extended conversation between two singles after what at first appears to be an intoxicated one-night stand. Over the course of 80 minutes, more about the characters and their motivations are revealed, perhaps elevating the surface situation to something more life changing.

The play opens with Doug (André Vauthey) getting up in the middle of the night and inadvertently waking Beth (Francesca Ravera). While she clearly wants him to return to her bedroom, he is obviously resistant for reasons that take a while to become clear. This leads to the balance of the action, which is the two engaged in an ongoing back and forth about what happened earlier and what it means.

While THE WAY WE GET BY features only the couple onstage, Beth’s unseen roommate, Kim, American Apparel, Star Wars and eventually the couple’s parents all become touchpoints in the telling of their story. Their intimacy is based on a shared history going back to childhood, but the cultural references to things like how the pre-rebranding American Apparel company was operated and trips to Comic Con serve as roadblocks to having a conversation of any depth.

Only in the last 15-20 minutes of THE WAY WE GET BY does the audience begin to understand these characters for more than superficial complaints about uptight roommates and concerns over vintage, autographed t-shirts. It is at this point that one might feel they have a stake in the outcome of Doug and Beth’s union. As written, directed and acted, the production moves along steadily enough to keep the audience engaged. This is not deep, soul-searching material, but it has enough to it to be entertaining.

- Kessa De Santis -