A woman's work is never done -- especially when the sheer annoyances and expectations involved in being a female involve as much toil as any paid employment. The rituals and pains of dieting, dressing, exercising, dating, waxing, and even relaxing are enough to send perfectly functional and sane women to the edge of a nervous breakdown. So it goes with the three roommates in Simona Berman and Kate Searcy's slight but appealing comedy, Crashing. More a tongue-in-cheek slice of life than a dramatic piece, Crashing throws together women in a New York apartment who, when not squabbling over housecleaning schedules or fretting over their love/health/career situations, help each other cope. The arc of the piece follows brazen, bosomy Cassidy (Berman), whose substitution of sex for self-esteem eventually catches up with her.
Otherwise, Crashing rises and falls on its uneven individual scenes, teased out by a dancer (Julia A. Reid) who also holds up occasionally amusing, sometimes superfluous title cards to begin each sequence. Berman proves the most ingratiating performer, though she's not vocally suited for the show's song parodies. Searcy, as the youngest of the trio, has some good scenes but also moments of monotonous delivery, which further rehearsals/performances will likely assist.
As Jean, a 30-ish woman who substitutes yoga and dance for sex, Verena Podack gets the play's most charming scene, wherein she's on a rare date and realizes that she's babbling nervously and can't help but babble nervously.
As a whole, the play still needs more of a raison d'etre than just the mundane "three roommates and their ordinary hopes and dreads." But the piece's good spirit, frankness and agreeable leads ensure that Crashing lands softly and sometimes even flies.
