Liam Forde (Tina Revazi/Studio Theatre)
Contemporary theater audiences familiar with the late night stylings of Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, or the mischievous Avenue Q might think they know what they’re in for with Hand to God, the story of a vulgar puppet who takes ownership of a churchgoing teen. But the devious puppet Tyrone would make Avenue Q’s residents blush—and send Triumph backing slowly away.
Tyrone’s Antichrist-like antics and violent tendencies aren’t cute or gently subversive, even if he’s sure to draw plenty of nervous laughter from the audience. The puppet is a genuine threat to the well-being of Jason (Liam Forde), a stammering, repressed teen coping with the recent death of his father.
He’s not the only one coping. His mother Margery (Susan Rome) is at her breaking point, pouring all her energies into a creative puppet-making class at her local church. Along with her son, she’s charged with supervising a pair of troubled teens, Jessica (Caitlin Collins) and Timothy (Ryan McBride), and the latter is clearly smitten with her. So is the awkward Pastor Greg (Tim Getman), a church leader driven by ulterior motives who supervises the group with a leering, watchful gaze.
When Tyrone begins to take over Jason’s life, those around him are quick to blame the devil—but is it just Jason’s id finally coping with tragedy (not to mention the self-destructive, narcissistic tendencies of his mother)? Hand to God builds to a tense face-off between Tyrone and those he torments, and it ultimately takes yet another puppet—a busty, sultry one wielded by Jessica—to get under the surface and figure out what really drives his antics. In the process, the play reaches an all too-literally shocking climax; audience members leery of puppet sex should be warned that nothing is off limits in this gamely graphic production.
With Hand to God, Studio has created a uniquely immersive experience. Its fourth floor theater has been convincingly transformed, down to its sticky-looking flooring and milquetoast religious posters, into the kind of all-purpose activities room that would be familiar to anyone who’s stepped inside a contemporary Christian church. The audience (which even gets to participate in the fun by creating their own sock puppets prior to curtain) is surrounded by the show’s action as the play progresses, and an impressive and startling lighting trick flips the switch during Act 2 to place them squarely into Tyrone’s blasphemous world.
The actors consistently make the characters seem like real, flawed, desperate individuals, particularly McBride’s rough-edged slacker kid Timothy. Meanwhile, Forde eerily transforms Tyrone into more and more of an extension of himself as the puppet’s formidable power gains traction. Think a giggle-provoking puppet can’t really be scary? Studio Theatre is ready to convince us otherwise.
Hand to God has been extended through August 14 at Studio Theatre. Tickets ($20-$60) are available here.
