The Golden Trident

By Olly Johnson

For their fall production, which is usually their most experimental one of the year, Stage Right Productions has decided to perform “Small Mouth Sounds.” Written by Bess Wohl, who almost won a Tony for best play with “Grand Horizons,” the play’s whole gimmick and basis is, strangely enough, silence. The plot follows six strangers at a nature getaway with an emotional guidance guru, aptly named Teacher (played by McLean Rowell), who gets them to agree to a vow of silence for the five days they are staying. 

This show is one of the oddest shows that Stage Right could have possibly picked, not only for them but for the whole school. Stage Right’s bread and butter is the more whimsical, happy shows. Shows like “Tinkerbell,” “Hello Dolly,” and “The SpongeBob SquarePants Musical” fall under this umbrella. So for them to suddenly turn 180 with a show that was marketed with the asterisk text of “not recommended for children under 13” and to rattle a laundry list of reasons, ranging from adult language to suicide, is very jarring. It’s almost like seeing a teacher at a Target or Walmart; it makes some sense, but something just feels so wrong.

Another thing that set this show apart from Stage Right’s usual lineup was its ensemble, or rather, the lack of an ensemble. There are seven actors in this production, half rounded down to what a normal Stage Right Production may have per show. And more than ever, they HAVE to carry this show. The set design is nice for a forest, but the fold-out chairs, Christmas trees, and cots are not going to send anyone in a frenzy (admittedly, the portable wooden door is really nifty). The lighting was fairly standard, with the only thing to write home about being a mountain cutout that sometimes goes in the background. The only technical thing that really stood out was the sound design, specifically the piano interludes between scenes. 

This show isn’t made for high-class technical techniques; it’s set in the middle of the woods. So, with all these setbacks, the cast of this show absolutely kills it. All six strangers cycled between being the best character in the show, depending on which scene decided to focus on them. They all convey their emotions and thoughts without being able to say a word, and when they break the silence, the scene becomes legendary. The scene where Ned (played by Miles Ragusa) rattles off his life story while awkwardly forgetting what he was supposed to be talking about was great. The show loves to showcase the tears and sorrows of the characters, which all sound genuine. The special highlight of this had to be Alicia (played by Emma Kasic) and the nightmares she has. 

However, the best character in the show had to be Rodney (played by Cosmos Sarkissian). He is a nature-loving hipster character, wearing large bead necklaces and exclusively flip-flops, and the original version of “Small Mouth Sounds” featured him shirtless. But, despite this, he is actually prone to violence and almost attacks Alicia and Jan (played by Dylan Dwyer), and is held back twice. The scene where Alicia throws water at Rodney, breaking up with him, and Rodney is about to attack her, gets held back, and simply crumbles and breaks down. It was very powerful. 

The whole production has this almost artisanal feeling, taking a non-linear approach with the story. The character’s identity and background are entirely inferred. Most of the characters are not even named. The whole play is full of symbolism, specifically the ocean. The play opens a story about an ocean frog and a well frog. The ocean frog meets the well frog and tells him all about the ocean, where the well frog responds by just dying. The show ends with Jan, who didn’t speak a word the whole show because he couldn’t speak English, repeating the word ocean. The show is obtuse, abstract, and beautiful. 

“Small Mouth Sounds” is strange. As a Golden High School and Stage Right play, this might be the worst play they have ever hosted. The stage is fine, the lights are fine, the characters don’t speak, and when they do, it’s in tears and whimpers. The story is meandering and hard to follow. It’s bad content. “Small Mouth Sounds” isn’t made for GHS, or perhaps, GHS isn’t made for “Small Mouth Sounds.” As art, this show is sublime. There is so much under the hood of this story, and what it means is very much up to interpretation. The meaning of “Small Mouth Sounds” is the silent, rippling of the ocean itself. Forever changing.