Playwright: Laura Marks. At: Gift Theatre, 4802 N. Milwaukee Ave. Tickets: 773-283-7071 or www.thegifttheatre.org; $20-$30. Runs through Nov. 23
Laura Marks' 2013 off-Broadway drama Bethany grips audiences from the start and won't let go. Now making its Chicago premiere at The Gift Theatre in an edge-of-your-seat staging by Marti Lyons, Bethany craftily instills feelings of hope and dread as you root for the play's heroine to beat the insurmountable odds stacked against her.
Marks sets Bethany in early 2009 at the height of the home mortgage meltdown, which eventually explains why the smartly dressed Crystal ( Hillary Clemens ) is first seen breaking into a foreclosed suburban home. But Crystal is startled to find out that she's not alone in the house—a survivalist and likely military veteran suffering from post-traumatic stress named Gary ( Paul D'Addario ) is already living in the house.
Crystal and Gary create an uneasy truce to share the house since they both need someplace to live. But as Bethany progresses, Crystal's desperation only grows when her deeply personal reasons are revealed as to why she needs to maintain the façade of home ownership to impress an inspector played by Susaan Jamshidi.
However, there are many roadblocks ahead for Crystal, ranging from very bad news from her boss ( Kirby O'Connell ), to problems with high-powered customers like the too-smooth motivational speaker Charlie ( James D. Farruggio ) and the wealthy Patricia ( Mary Anne Bowman ).
If I'm being cagey with some of the plot details, that's because what makes Bethany so compelling is how Marks creates a sense of mystery throughout the play, cannily revealing nuggets of information to help piece together the characters' predicaments. Also, I don't want to spoil some of the surprise of Lyons' superlative staging ( let's just say that set designer Courtney O'Neill works wonders with the script's changing locations for the tiny space ).
Also much of the tense joy comes from the strong and convincing performances that Lyons draws out for Bethany. In particular, watching Clemens as Crystal thinking on the spot to negotiate her way out of so many falsehoods and perilous situations is an acting marvel.
As the two men that Crystal desperately needs to get along with, D'Addario is especially unsettling as he spews out Gary's wacky conspiracy theories, while Farruggio gets plenty of laughs ( and contempt ) as the super-slick Charlie. Let's just say that the men don't come off too well in Bethany, especially when their actions drive Crystal to take such extreme and disturbing measures.
The reteaming Marks and Lyons for Bethany after last season's acclaimed premiere of Mine at The Gift Theatre is certainly a very welcome artistic reunion. Bethany is undoubtedly one of the must-see thrillers of the season, and that's in large part thanks to Marks and Lyons' great work played with such intense intimacy in The Gift Theatre.
