Jessica Hershberg as Charlie in Soon. Photo: Teresa Wood.
By DCist Contributor Rachel Kurzius
One of the best excuses for procrastination is “Oh, I’ll just do it tomorrow.” Soon, a musical making its world premiere at Signature Theatre, proposes one better—the impending apocalypse. What’s the point of doing anything today if tomorrow won’t even happen?
Before Wolf Blitzer announces that life will cease to exist on Earth in a few short months (a water crisis—but the specifics don’t really matter), Charlie (Jessica Hershberg) is an aspiring baker in Manhattan. But why make a new cupcake/muffin hybrid if humanity won’t survive to enjoy it?
With book, music, and lyrics by Nick Blaemire, Soon jumps around in time. It charts Charlie’s burgeoning relationship with Jonah (Alex Brightman), a romantic lead befitting this generation. He’s a knight in shining armor made of quirkiness, old (though ethical-seeming!) family money, and devotion. Jonah is a risk-taker, while Charlie would prefer to wait out the fire and brimstone in her Manhattan apartment.
“When you make things, it makes things better,” Jonah tells Charlie. He’s talking about the baked goods, sure, but their relationship, too. He thinks that it’s worth being in love, even if it ends in heartbreak. Everything ends, apocalypse or not, so why not try? Charlie is not so sure, thanks in large part to the influence of her mother (Natascia Diaz).
Charlie lives with Steven (Joshua Morgan), whom she describes as “a boyfriend and a sister all rolled into one.” Morgan is a deft physical comedian, and he gets the best laugh lines. As Charlie’s mom Adrienne, Diaz brings a lightness to what could otherwise be a cloying role, and she has a lovely singing voice. The tender relationships brought to life by the entire cast keep their characters away from cliche territory.
Blaemire’s songs all move the story along and are ably sung by the cast, though none of them are memorable enough to stay in your head for long after the show. His decision to write the narrative action out of order is a good one. Interactions gain new meaning and become more resonant as backstory fills in.
This musical really belongs to the production team, though. After all, how do you make questioning existence itself feel fresh? Matthew Gardiner’s direction succeeds wholeheartedly on that front. While the entire play takes place in Charlie and Steven’s apartment, the audience never feels as stuck in there as Charlie is. This is largely due to Matthew Haber’s cleverly designed projections, which broadcast news reports, weather and abstractions—and at one point transform the entire stage into a park. They deepen the audience’s understanding of Charlie’s headspace, and are impressive in scope.
Lighting design from Brian Tovar heightens the mood in unexpected ways. Dozens of lamps in the apartment flicker different colors. Lavender lighting creates a romantic tone in one scene. And the audience can feel the totality of the world’s death sentence thanks to great sound design via Lane Elms.
Unfortunately, Blaemire’s script chickens out at the last minute and Soon quickly loses steam, though all of the action leading up to the finale is imbued with just the right mood. Musicals should move you and make you want to move. Soon does both of these things, entertainingly so. It veers confidently from doom-laden to charming to claustrophobic because the technical and production elements work with such precision.
Soon plays at Signature Theatre through April 26. Tickets, $40-98, are available online
