In the world premiere of Kathryn Gras' Hermetically Sealed, we meet the May family. The mother, Tessie (Gigi Bermingham in a riveting performance), and her 15-year-old son Conor (the remarkable Nicholas Podany) are trying in different ways to cope with the recent death of 17-year old Jimmy (Wolfie Trausch). The latter, it is revealed slowly, died in a car crash involving drugs and drink and possible homosexual high jinks. His presence in the play is ghostlike but all-important.
Tessie, a single mom on the verge of a breakdown, is in severe denial about Jimmy and refuses to leave the house, burying herself in her kitchen (nifty set & lighting by Jeff McLaughlin) where she cranks out an unending stream of pastries. Conor also locks himself in, occupying himself with violent video games and with wild, profane fantasies of revenge on society. Podany makes this slightly demented kid come to life in a kinetic and powerful way; this is a young actor to watch out for.
The catalytic characters are the Dales (Julia Prud'homme and Brendan Patrick Connor), a loud-mouthed, overbearing couple who make a fateful visit to the Gray household. Narrow-minded, moralistic and hypocritical to a fault -- they're the kind of "average" Americans who spout bible slogans in public and watch porn at home -- the Dales drive the action in Graf's family drama, exploding the "hermetically sealed" cocoon in which Tessie and Conor have been hiding.
Hermetically Sealed was developed in the Katselas Theater Company's Inkubator play development program. Skillfully directed by Joel Polis, the play maintains tension and suspense throughout, and has the finishing wallop of a heavyweight boxing match.
