A strained mother-son relationship forms the core of this engaging play by Max Posner, which is the final offering in the current season at Next Act Theatre. In a particularly strong season of offerings at Next Act, The Treasurer is among the best productions it has offered in 2023-24.
In this darkly funny play, a middle-aged Son (in this case, a geologist from Denver) is forced to deal with a family member he’d rather forget: his mother Ida. She ran off with another man when the son was 13 and lived a glamorous, spendthrift life that their finances couldn’t cover. This fact becomes all-too-apparent when Ida’s second husband dies and she is faced with some stark realities. She’s going to be homeless unless her three sons pitch in to help support her.
Worse, Ida’s own mental health starts to decline just as she is being moved into an independent senior living facility. It’s one of the most expensive places in Albany, NY; one that neither she nor her sons can afford. But the children agree (in a wonderfully written series of long-distance phone calls) to concede to the mother’s wishes. (The role of Ida is beautifully performed by Annabel Armour.)
“There goes my retirement,” claims the youngest Son (Reese Madigan) after he agrees to take over his mother’s finances. He has been deputized by his brothers to fill this task. The other brothers claim that Madigan’s character is the most likely to “be firm” with their unwieldy, free spending mother. (Hence the play’s title: The Treasurer.)
Ida’s narcissistic fantasy world calls to mind another memory play, Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie. In this play, the mother has big dreams for her children just so she will be able to boast about them to her friends. In both instances, the adult children are embarrassed and sometimes angry at their mothers’ behavior, particularly around non-family members.
However, in The Glass Menagerie, the character of Tom is able to follow in his absent father’s footsteps by “falling in love with long distance” and leaving his mother. Here, the Son isn’t so lucky. He has to grit it out until his mother’s death.
By the time this happens, the audience is not surprised to find that the Son weeps no tears for his deceased mother. His wordless reaction to hearing the news on the phone is filled with pent-up anger and emotion about what he should feel, as opposed to what he actually does feel.
This production is the local directorial debut for company Artistic Director Cody Estle, who has been at Next Act for about a year. He integrates the play’s elements with sensitivity and balance; it is an impressive debut.
As the Son, Reese Madigan, an accomplished actor who has appeared at many Milwaukee theaters, must communicate his character mainly in half-sentences and long pauses. He comes off as a likable and very sympathetic character who simply asks too much of himself.
In The Treasurer almost none of the play’s in-person interactions are between family members talking face to face. Most of the time, these interactions involve Ida dealing with a number of salespeople in upscale shops. Both of the “brothers” (including Alexis Green, a woman) also play the role of salespeople, and others. Well-known local actor/director David Flores displays his versatility in appearing as several of these different characters.
In these scenes, we see how Ida navigates the world. Her overdone compliments are interspersed with a few self-serving comments meant to boost her own esteem. However, when Ida realizes her error in making an offensive comment, she becomes almost comical as she tries to ingratiate herself with others even more.
As for the Son, he finally loses temper with his mother as she attempts to purchase an expensive new iPhone. Before completing the transaction, the phone store salesperson (David Flores, again) has to call the Son, who is listed as the phone account’s owner. The mother gets on the phone to tell her son that it isn’t right for her to have an outdated phone when all her friends have a shiny, newer model. This is too much for the Son, who shouts at her so loudly that she is basically forced to back off. Ida relents, but it is only a temporary retreat.
In another scene, Ida demands a puppy after her elderly dog needs to be put down. Then she spends freely on the substitute pet, whether it’s for grooming at a fancy dog salon or visits to doggy day care. She seems to be completely unaware that her spending directly impacts the finances of her children and grandchildren.
As the play wraps up, the Son doesn’t seem to soften towards his mother. For this, he conscripts himself to a type of hell that may or may not exist (things get blurrier at this point).
The Treasurer involves a minimal set (set design by Jeffrey D. Kmiec and Milo Bue), with a more detailed addition near the end that perks up the play’s visual aspect. The lighting (by Becca Jeffords) often casts the characters in clear, individual pools of light that serve to separate them geographically. Sound design (by Josh Schmidt) helps to fill in the gaps left by the minimal scenery. Costumes (by Gregory Graham) put the Son from Denver in casual, recreational attire, with slightly more professional for the salespeople. Ida is always immaculately dressed and coiffed with a preppy look that seems to have served her well.
The Treasurer takes a clear, hard-eyed look at a situation that may inevitably involve most of us at some point. Next Act has thoughtfully pulled together the play’s disparate elements to create an evening of enjoyable theater.
